^^ 


THE 


TRAGEDIES 


OF 


SOPHOCLES: 


U  E>GLISiI  PROSE. 


THE   OXFORD   TRANSLATION. 


KEW   EDITION,  REVISED   ACCORDING    TO   THE   TEXT    OF   DINDORF. 

3  D       JD      3       O       J  J  »  J     0    J 


}  '      J        J  O    J 


>  I         )  3  1       ,      1  T     1  :>        5       ->     3     5 

N  E  ^Y    YORK: 
H  A  R  P  E  r.    &    BROTHERS,    PUBLISHERS, 

FRANKLIN     SQUARE. 

18  86. 


Jss 


HARPER'S 


S^^L^L 


NEW    CLASSICAL    LIBEARY. 


COMPBISINa    LITKEAL    TRAKSLATIONS    07 


aSSAR. 

VIRGIL. 

SALLU3T. 

HORACE. 

TERENCE. 

TACITUS.    2  Vols. 

LIVY.     2  Vols. 

CICERO'S  ORATIONS. 

CICERO'S      OFFICES,      L.ELIUS, 

CATO  MAJOR,  PARADOXES, 

SCIPIO'S     DREAM,     LETTER 

TO   QUIXTUS. 
CICERO     OX     ORATORY     AN'D 

ORATORS. 

PLATO   (SELECT 


CICERO'S  TUSCULAN  DISPUTA- 
TIOXS,  THE  NATURE  OF  THE 
GODS,  AND  THE  COMMON- 
WEALTH. 

JUVENAL. 

XENOPHON. 

HOMER'S   ILIAD. 

HOMER'S  ODYSSEY. 

HERODOTUS. 

DEMOSTHENES.     2  Vola. 

THUCYDIDES. 

^SCHYLUS. 

SOPHOCLES. 

EURIPIDES.     2  V0I3. 
DIALOGUES). 


12aio,  Cletb,  $1  00  per  Volume. 

%j3'  Harper  &  Bbothkbs  vulll  sfnd  eilhtr  <J  the  above  worhili,'  maH,  postage  prepaitl,  to  ai:p 
p»H  «f  tht  United  o<c*e4  -v  CatMdf.,  en  -.tc-i^  -/<'*  pnct. 

'    .       I  .  i         c  >         c      .     ,         ,  , 

'       c      c  t    I         <       I  t     C       c         c 

■^         '  '        t  c      c         c  ,   , 


(  <  c   c   ft  c  \  t/ft  /f    '  '  t^^^Y  e. 


is 


J 


PREFACE. 


The  cliief  aim  of  the  publisher  in  the  present  volume  was 
to  furnish  an  improved  reprint  of  the  Standard  Oxford  version, 
■without  depriving  the  original  work  of  those  features  which 
have  insured  its  favorable  reception  in  both  Universities. 

To  cany  out  this  view,  the  editor  has  carefullj  revised  the 
translation  throughout,  adhering  closely  to  the  text  of  Dindorf, 
which  is  now  universally  established,  and  is  adopted  by  our 
public  examiners.  In  a  few  cases,  the  corrupt  state  of  the 
original  has  rendered  a  different  course  necessary,  but  every 
departure  from  the  received  text  has  been  pointed  out  at  the 
foot  of  the  page. 

The  version  has,  where  possible,  been  made  more  literal,  es- 
pecially as  regards  the  choruses ;  and  many  words  and  -pnv- 
ticles,  before  indistinctly  rendered,  have,  it  is  hoped,  recovered 
their  force  and  meaning. 

Arguments  before  each  play,  and  a  brief  introduction  have 
been  added,  and  the  notes  have  been  considerably  augmented. 
These  additions  are  distinguished  by  the  initial  of  the  preser-t 
editor. 

TiiEODOKE  Alois  BuckleT' 

Christ  Church,  Oxford. 


INTEODUCTIOK* 


Sophocles,  son  of  Sopliilus,  was  born  r^t  Colonus,  a  demo 
of  Attica,  B.C.  495.  His  father  was  of  a  iioocl  and  wealthy 
family,  and  so  careful  of  the  education  of  his  son,  that  at 
the  age  of  sixteen  he  gained  prizes  for  music,  his  instructor 
being  the  celebrated  Lamprus.  About  the  year  B.C.  4G8, 
when  the  bones  of  Theseus  were  removed  by  Cimon  from 
Scyrus  to  Athens,  ^schylus  and  Sophocles  were  competitors 
in  the  tragic  contests,  which  would  seem  to  have  been  the 
first  appearance  of  cur  poet  in  the  character  of  a  dramatist. 
Sophocles  obtained  the  first  prize,  and  iEschylus  departed  for 
Sicily.  The  beauty  of  his  appearance  and  his  gracefulness 
of  demeanor  increased  his  popularity,  but  a  weak  state  of 
voice  and  delicacy  of  lungs  prevented  his  progress  as  an  actor. 
In  440  B.C.  the  '-Antigone"  was  produced,  and  to  the  sagaci- 
ty of  the  political  precepts  therein  delivered,  he  is  said  to  have 
been  indebted  for  his  appointment  as  one  of  the  colleagues  of 
Pericles. 

In  old  age  Sophocles  was  considerably  engaged  in  public 
duties,  being  priest  to  the  hero  Alon,  and  likevrise  ^  prohoulos 
or  commissioner  upon  the  fatal  termination  of  the  Sicilian 
expedition.  He  subsequently  connected  himself  with  the  aris- 
tocratic views  of  Pisander,  aud  was  concerned  in  forming  the 
council  of  four  hundred,  "wnth  which  fell  the  old  constitution 
of  Athens.  This  conduct  he  was  accustomed  to  defend  upon 
the  plea  of  expediency. 

In  consequence  either  of  a  family  jealousy,  or  of  his  too 

'  The  materials  of  this  memoir  are  chiefly  derived  from  Lcssing,  as 
ppitomized  in  the  "Theatre  of  the  Greeks,"  ch.  v.,  p.  72. 


vi  LXTKODUCTIOX. 

great  attention  to  dramatic  affairs,  he  ^vas  at  length,  at  an 
advanced  age,  charged  Avith  dotage,  and  incapacity  of  con- 
ducting his  family  affairs,  by  his  son  lophon.  It  is  said  tliat 
he  gained  the  favorable  suffrage  of  his  judges  by  reciting  the 
newly-finished  tragedy  of  the  "  CEdipus  at  Colonus,"  but 
chronological  difficulties  rencfer  this  story  doubtful.  Plis  death 
took  place  at  the  beginning  of  tiie  year  405  B.C.,  either  from 
over-exertion  in  reading,  or  from  suffocation  by  a  gi'ape  dur- 
ing the  Anthesterian  festival.  He  was  buried  at  Decelea,  the 
family's  bmying-place,  but  not  before  the  permission  of  Ly- 
sander  was  obtained,  the  place  then  being  in  possession  of  the 
Lacedemonians.  The  number  of  his  genuine  dramas  probably 
amounted  to  110. 

The  truckling  and  inconsistent  character  of  Sophocles  was 
evinced  even  in  the  politics  of  his  plays,  V\'iiilc  in  private  life 
he  was  rather  the  agreeable  companion  than  the  practical  mor- 
alist. Still,  a  dignified  gentleness  and  a  contented  simplicity 
pre-eminently  distinguished  him,  v/hilo  his  whole  ILb,  as  his 
vmtincs,  exhibited  an  unrufiled  comnosure,  almost  amounting; 
to  indifference. 

Only  seven  plays  and  some  comparatively  unimportant 
fragments  of  this  author  have  survived  the  ravages  of  time, 
but  v/c  have  been  fortunate  in  obtaining  at  least  four  of  the 
best  among  the  few  Vvdiicli  have  been  preserved,  viz.,  ':hc 
"  Phiioctetes,"  "Antigone,"  and  two  "  QEdipi.''^  The  con- 
nection betvv'een  the  last  three  plays,  though  remarkable,  vras 
not  the  result  of  previous  design,  as  tlio  ''  G^dipus  at  Co- 
lonus" was  exhibited  four  years  after  the  death  of  the  author 
by  the  younger  Sophocles,  and  the  '•  Antigone,"  posterior  to 
it  in  point  of  historical  time  and  events,  was  produced  440 
B.C.,  as  above  mentioned.  Still,  they  should  be  read  in  the 
order  which  the  natural  sequence  of  circumstances  demands, 

'  But  Schlegel,  p.  100,  cnumcrcitcs  the  "Antigone,"  "Elcctra,"  and 
two  "  CEdipi"  as  those  most  approved  by  the  ancients. 


IXTRODUCTION.  ^ij 

We  can  not,  perhaps,  better  employ  the  present  opportunity 
than  by  briefly  sketching  some  of  the  chief  characters  of  these 
phiys,  in  connection  with  such  critical  remarks  as  naturally 
arise.  ^ 

The  "  OEdipus  Rex"  is  the  most  complicated  and  artfully 
sustained  of  extant  Greek  plays.  From  the  first  few  lines, 
where  Qildipus  appears  as  the  heaven-bidden  prosecutor  of 
the  rcfricide  of  old,  to  the  last  stroke  of  fotal  evidence  that 
dooms  him  to  self-courted  ruin  and  despair,  we  arc  continually 
kept  in  alternate  doubt,  fear,  and  hope4  At  one  moment  the 
denunciation  of  the  seer  is  contradicted  by  the  seeming  incon- 
sistency of  predestination,  and  the  very  cause  of  that  hope 
presently  turns  to  be  the  damning  proof  of  guilt  and  pollution. 
Xor  is  this  dreadful  process  of  fotalism  less  fearfully  realized 
in  the  accidental  expressions  unwarily  let  drop  by  (Edipus. 
Thus,  when  he  imprecates  curses  on  himself, 

"Yea,  on  inyself,  if  conscious  of  the  deed 
I  grant  the  wretch  asylum  in  my  home, 
The  same  dread  curse,  in  all  its  vengeance,  fall !" 

Tiresias  afterward  charges  him : 

"  Pla  !  is  it  thus  1     Nay,  then,  I  tell  thee,  king. 
Adhere  to  thine  own  edict ;  from  this  hour 
No  more  hold  converse  or  with  these  or  mc, 
Thou  art  the  solo  polluter  of  our  land." 

The  impetuous  spu'it  of  CEdipus  breaks  forth,  and  he  ac- 
cuses the  seer  and  Creon  of  caballing  to  drive  him  from  the 
throne.  Jocasta  seeks  to  appease  the  quarrel,  and  thereby 
l)ecomcs  instrumental  to  the  sad  discover^'  of  the  truth.  The 
death  of  Polybus  gives  a  momentary  respite  from  anxiety,  and 
Qi^dipus  almost  equals  his  mother-wife  in  skepticism.  But 
here  again  the  wild  determination  of  Qi^dipus  works  out  his 
doom.     In  a  paroxysm  of  agony,  Jocasta  would  suj)press  the 

^  In  this  task  I  shall  partly  avail  myself  of  the  remarks  of  Schlegel, 
Lect  vii.  p.  100-110,  and  Buhver's  "  Athens,"'  Book  v.  ch.  4. 


viii  INTRODUCTION. 

tidings  she  knew  too  late,  but  Qilclipus  compels  the  messenger 
to  recount  the  whole  tale,  and  then  madly  confesses  how  fear- 
fully the  ancient  curse  of  the  gods  was  brought  to  pass.  The 
vain  attempt  to  escape  from  fate,  and  the  thereby  falling  into 
the  performance  of  what  he  strove  to  avoid,  reminds  us  of  the 
complete  and  beautiful  story  of  Prince  Agib  in  the  Arabian 
Nights.^  Both  tempted  futurity,  and  became  murderers  ;  both 
sought  for  knovv^ledge  which  they  were  warned  was  dangerous, 
and  both  suffered  sadly  for  their  curiosity. 

Among  the  subordinate  characters  of  the  piece,  that  of 
Jocasta  is  the  most  painfully  drawn.  Her  arrogant  levity 
and  confidence  almost  breathe  the  ruin  darkly  hinted  at  by 
the  chorus,  and  we  feel  that  the  curse  of  "  blindness  of  heart" 
is  upon  her.  She  is,  moreover,  selfish  in  her  very  affection 
for  Qildipus.  His  anxiety  for  the  dying  people  she  shares  not. 
Her  religion  is  a  blind  belief  of  convenience,  and  she  would 
even  charge  the  mistakes  of  human  seers  to  the  blindness  or 
inconsistency  of  the  gods.  Of  her  late  husband  she  has  so  lit- 
tle thought,  that  the  personal  resemblance  of  QKdipus  never 
occurs  to  lier.2  The  questions  concerning  his  death  awaken 
no  regrets ;  in  short,  she  is  as  bad  a  widow  as  Steele  could 
depict,  even  ih  the  "  Funeral."  Her  death  is  fraught  with  no 
words  of  tenderness  for  her  infant  children,  but  is  the  deed 
of  a  wild,  unholy  phrenzy.  Qidipus,  on  the  contrary,  toils 
out  his  term  of  woes,  and  meets  death  with  manly  composure. 
Though  stern  in  his  hatred  toward  his  undutiful  sons,  his 
daughters  claim  his  tenderest  regard.  In  his  wanderings, 
amid  beggary  and  wretchedness,  a  by-word  for  the  scoffer,  a 
proverbial  vagabond,  he  is  still  '•  every  inch  a  king."  His 
philosoi:)hic  moderation  is  shown  at  the  beginning  of  the 
"  GEdipus  Coloneus,"  where  he  tells  us  how  sufferings,  and 

-'  See  the  "  Story  of  the  third  Royal  Mendicant,"  vol.  i.,  p.  183-5^ 
Lane's  translation. 

^  See  Schlegel,  p.  102. 


INTIIODUCTIOX.  ix 

lapse  of  tiDic,  and  native  nobleness  had  tanglit  him  to  deem 
the  beggar  s  pittance  enough. 

In  this  play,  it  has  been  well  remarked  that  the  poet  ap- 
pears as  the  panegyrist  of  Athens.  And  this  is  evident  from 
the  very  commencement,  where  the  description  of  the  Furies' 
grove,  so  praised  by  Humboldt, ^  and  the  subsequent  charac- 
ter of  Theseus,  mark  the  povrer  of  the  poet  to  blend  local 
and  picturesque  with  political  interest.  As  the  waters  of  the 
llissus  were  consecrated  by  the  mystic  love-lore  of  Socrates, 
so  was  the  silent  Cephisus  made  solemn  by  the  last  sojourn  of 
QEdipus  while  living.  To  the  Lacedemonians  nature  was  but 
the  rude  element  of  strife,  their  land  was  dear  to  them  as  a 
safeguard  in  war,  not  sweet  with  the  remembrance  of  those 
who  taught  peace  and  cherished  the  arts  of  life.  But  to  the 
Athenian's  mind  art  had  made  nature  a  subject  of  contempla- 
tion, philosophy  had  associated  nature  with  nature's  causes, 
and  religion  had  interwoven  place  with  thought,  and  sancti- 
fied each  village,  stream,  or  grove  vntli  the  remembrance  of 
the  days  Vv'hen  the  gods  Avalked  the  earth.  The  ''  Qildipus  at 
Colonus"  could  teach  how  the  earlier  ages  of  Athens  retained 
a  holy  simplicity,  when  the  rights  of  the  suppliant  or  herald, 
though  in  an  evil  or  forlorn  cause,  were  equally  respected :  it 
could  show  reasons  for  hero-worship,  and  from  the  glory  of 
the  past  could  awaken  the  listlessness  of  future  generations. 
In  short,  Theseus,  himself  mythical,  was  the  connecting  link 
in  political  theory  between  the  mythical  and  the  real.  His 
character  possessed  the  glories  of  the  one  blended  Avith  the 
probability  of  the  other. 

In  this  play  we  find  the  character  of  Creon,  which  Avas  of 
but  little  importance  in  the  '•  King  Qildipus,"  ripened  into 
the  tyrannical  and  arbitrary  disposition,  which  ascends  to  its 
liighest  pitch  and  subsequent  fall  in  the  "Antigone."  Still, 
in  all  the  three  plays,  Creon  is  but  instrumental  to  the  devel- 
^  Cosmos,  vol.  ii.,  p.  377  of  Bohn's  edition. 

1* 


X  INTRODUCTION. 

opment  of  other  characters  and  tiie  progress  of  the  story. 
As  in  the  first  play,  he  brings  out  the  petuhmt  disposition  of 
Qi^dipus,  and  excites  that  curiosity  which  is  to  lead  to  the 
fatal  discovery — as  in  the  '^  Antigone"  he  is  but  a  foil  to  set 
forth  the  mighty  spirit  of  tlic  heroine,  so  in  tlie  Oedipus  at 
Colonus  he  leads  to  the  generous  intervention  of  Theseus, 
and  hastens  to  bring  gradual  ruin  upon  his  own  house  and 
city.  Furthermore,  it  was  necessary  that  GEdipus  should  be 
tried  to  the  fullest  extent,  in  order  that  his  gloomy  fatalism 
might  be  thoroughly  enhanced.  Hence  his  paternal  feelings 
are  aroused  to  love  by  the  seizure  and  subsequent  restoration 
of  his  daughters,  and  to  hatred  by  the  intervention  of  the 
repentant  but  ill-fortuned  Polynices. 

The  same  remark  applies  to  the  selfish  and  insipid  Ismene, 
who  is  tv>'ice  placed  in  contradistinction  to  the  warm-hearted 
and  principled  Antigone.  Her  position  in  the  present  play  is 
but  preparatory  to  her  ripened  selfishness  in  the  third  of  these 
continuous  dramas. 

It  has  been  objected  that  the  self-justification  of  Oedipus  in 
this  play  is  inconsistent  with  his  despair  in  the  first.  But 
time,  lonn-sufierinfr,  and  the  consciousness  that  an  end  of  troub- 
leg  was  at  hand,  might  well  nerve  the  hapless  old  king  to  a 
sense  of  his  unmerited  woes.  Moreover,  it  is  in  human  nature 
to  retort  upon  an  unworthy  accuser,  though  the  charge  be  true. 
If  Creon  was  the  champion  of  rapine  and  tyranny,  the  good 
king  of  old  times  could  ill  plead  his  own  unworthiness  to  such 
an  n'ccuser. 

V^  We  now  come  to  the  Antigone,  a  play  almost  as  popular 
in  modern  times  as  celebrated  in  antiquity.  There  can  be 
little  doubt  that  the  character  of  Antigone  is  the  gem  of  the 
Athenian  stage;  she  is,  as  Bulwer  observes,  the  "  Cordeha 
on  whom  Oedipus  leans — a  Cordelia  he  has  never  thrust  from'* 
him."  Her  patient  afi'ection  bears  with  the  jieevish  com- 
plaints and  desolate  poverty  of  her  fiilher,  and,  at  his  death, 


LXTllODUCTIOX.  xj 

her  feeli!i2;s  of  dutv  are  transferred  to  the  fulfillment  of  her 
brother's  last  entreaty.  lie  had  gone  forth  the  predestined 
victim  of  the  light ;  his  corse  lay  desecrated,  and  fear  re- 
strained all  from  bestowing  even  a  handful  of  dust  upon  the 
imliallowed  dead.  True  to  her  promise,  and  reckless  of  the 
tyrant's  mandate,  Antigone  dares  to  do  the  deed  of  piety, 
and  seeks  not  to  deny  or  excuse  it.  She  has  determined 
tj  encounter  death  itself  on  behalf  of  the  dead.  Neither 
the  dissuading  v\'ords  of  her  timid  and  selfish  sister,  nor 
the  hope  of  a  royal  marriage  with  a  loved  object,  can  retard 
her  resolution.  She  is  the  victim  of  a  good  principle,  as 
Creon  is  of  a  bad  one.  With  him,  selfish  aniirandizement  is 
the  main  spring  of  action  ;  with  Antigone,  to  have  forgotten 
self  is  to  have  o:ained  all  thin";s.  She  mourns  the  sunlio-ht 
which  is  to  be  closed  from  her  forever,  but  finds  a  gleam 
of  hope  even  in  the  murky  dens  of  Plades.  She  has  no  fears 
for  the  future,  and  her  spirit  rises  above  the  petty  affections 
that  bid  her  cling  to  life.  Pier  magnificent  and  daring  de- 
nunciation of  Creon's  boasted  laws,  and  her  sublime  descrip- 
tion of  the  eternal,  un^^Titton  code,  sealed  only  in  the  tablets 
of  time,  is  powerfully  contrasted  with  her  tender  address  to 
her  dead  relatives,  and  the  sv/an-like  dirges  in  which  she  be- 
wails  her  untimely  fate. 

I  may  here  take  notice  of  the  opinion  relative  to  ^erse  572, 
wliich  many  commentators  still  assign  to  Ismene.  Surely,  if 
only  upon  grammatical  grounds,  the  reply  of  Creon  is  sufficient 
to  show  that  Antigone  must  have  uttered  the  ejaculation : 

"  O  dearest  HEmon,  how  thy  father  wrongs  thee  !" 

A  sudden  burst  of  feminine  tenderness  is  in  no  wise  incon- 
sistent with  the  Grecian  heroine.  If  Ismene  had  uttered  it, 
we  should  feel  at  some  loss  for  so  sudden  a  warmth  on  the 
part  of  this  young  lady,  v>'lio  is  generally  as  passionless  and  in- 
sipid as  the  best  genteel  comedy  heroine  of  modern  times. 


xii  INTRODUCTION. 

It  may  be  cloubted  Avhcther  the  frequent  success  of  Men- 
delssohn's "  Antio-one,"  with  which  Mr.  Donaldson  is  some- 
what  merry"  in  his  clever  and  amusing  preface,  might  not 
have  proved  instrumental  in  reviving  a  taste  for  the  classic 
drama.  But  there  is  so  general  a  deficiency  in  modern  actors 
and  audiences,  that  unless  a  sentiment  is  accompanied  by  a 
storm  from  Costa's  band,  it  has  little  chance.  Still,  wo  even 
wish  that  "  Antigone"  had  been  made  a  musical  study  for  Yi- 
ardot  and  Marin i. 

Vrith  some  apology  for  this  digression,  v.e  turn  to  the  minor 
characters  of  the  piece.  Of  Creon  we  have  already  spoken, 
but  we  may  farther  observe  the  superstition  to  vrhich,  despite 
his  boastful  sternness,  he  is  subject.  Tiresias,  who  had  in  a 
manner  befriended  him  when  CEdipus  was  living,  can  hardly 
command  respect  w^iile  present ;  but  immediately  he  departs, 
the  ill-omened  w^ords  of  his  prophecy  weigh  heavily  on  the 
mind  of  the  king,  and  he  timorously  obeys  the  ad\-ice  of  the 
chorus,  and  hearkens  to  those  whom  he  had  spurned  with 
threats. 

The  character  of  Ilaimon  seems  to  have  been  framed  to 
please  the  popular  ear.  He  is  a  true  Athenian  pleader.  Util- 
ity is  his  excuse  for  justice,  justice  the  available  consequence 
of  utility.  The  voice  of  the  people  must  be  respected — and 
this  is  the  burden  of  his  speech.  But,  although  his  argu- 
ments are  scarcely  solid,  yet  they  are  suited  to  the  hearer,  and 
are  likely  to  prevail,  v/here  religion  and  tenderness  v/ould  have 
little  Vv'cight.  Besides,  there  is  much  modesty  and  dutifulness 
in  the  first  part  of  his  address,  and  his  devotion  is  fully  shown 
in  the  catastrophe.  Tlis  turning  upon  liis  father,  sword  in 
hand,  was  a  mistake  of  the  poet.  Attempted  parricide,  how 
great  soever  the  provocation,  was  an  unnatural  and  revolting 
anticlimax  to  his  previous  beliavior.  ^^ 

The  "  Electra"  naturally  follows  the  "  Antigone"  in  a 
cntical  consideration  of  ethical  developcmcnt.     Both  Electra 


INTRODUCTION.  xiii 

and  Antigone  appear  in  behalf  of  the  wronged  dead,  but  in 
Electra,  love  has  been  sharpened  into  keen  hatred,  tenderness 
to  a  deceased  fatlier  has  hardened  into  vindictive  wrath  against 
his  murderers,  and  Electra  is  a  virago  almost  bereft  of  female 
feelings.  There  is,  however,  a  selfishness  in  her  grief  that 
distino-uishes  itself  from  the  noble  and  disinterested  darinji:  of 
Antigone.  Constantly  mourning  her  own  misfortunes,  her 
grief  for  her  father  is  but  for  the  sufFerings  his  death  has  brought 
upon  herself,  her  hopes  of  Orestes  but  the  expectation  of  safety 
and  comfort  in  lieu  of  desolation.  The  mind  of  Antigone 
glov/s  with  youthful  impulse,  chastened  with  matured  principle, 
v/hile  Electra  exhibits  little  else  than  the  accumulated  bitter- 
ness of  continued  years  of  misfortune.  Even  her  mournings 
at  the  supposed  death  of  Orestes  teem  with  selfishness,  while 
the  consciousness  that  she  is  "  unmarried,  at  her  age,"  is  al- 
most ludicrously  dwelt  on  at  every  opportunity. 

Bulwer  has  rightly  observed  that  the  interest  excited  by  the 
splendid  description  of  the  chariot-race  and  of  the  pretended 
death  of  Orestes  is  lessened  by  the  knowledge  that  it  is  a  feign- 
ed story,  and  the  appearance  of  Orestes  excites  little  interest, 
because  we  are  fully  prepared  for  it. 

The  catastrophe  of  the  play,  like  that  of  the  Chocphoras  of 
.3ilschylus,  is  bold  and  animated,  but  the  death  of  ^gisthus  has 
too  much  of  deliberation.  Nevertheless,  the  cool,  deathly  pur- 
pose of  Orestes  is  replete  with  the  retributive  terrors  of  divine 
justice,  and  the  death  of  the  murderer  in  the  very  place  of  his 
own  crime  Avas  a  necessary  sacrifice  to  the  notion  of  an  aven- 
ging deity  and  mindful  fury.  Orestes  is  the  very  embodiment 
of  this  principle,  but  his  character  is  drawn  with  less  strength 
than  in  ^schylus. 

Clytemnestra  is  not  the  Clytemnestra  of^schylus;  she  lacks 
the  tact  and  boldness  of  the  heroine  of  the  "Agamemnon." 
She  here  appears  rather  as  the  sophistical  sensualist,  striving 
to  supply  the  want  of  truth  by  violence,  and  jdelding  to  super- 


xiv  IXTRODUCTiON. 

stition  and  impiety  at  the  same  moment.  Nay,  the  Clytem- 
ncstra  of  ^Iischylus  has  certain  qualities  ahiiost  commanding 
respect.  Her  bold  energy  and  haughty  indifference  to  con- 
sequences equal  the  mad  devilry  of  Lady  Macbeth,  but  in 
Sophocles,  Clytemnestra  is  scarcely  a  tragic  character.  Her 
paltry  and  sophistical  reasoning  with  Electra  renders  the  abuse 
v/ith  which  it  is  accompanied  almost  contemptible.  ^^,^^'''' 

The  '^TEAcrma^E"  is,  dramatically  speaking,  the  worst  of 
the  existing  plays  of  Sophocles.  Its  beauties  lie  in  the  feminine 
gentleness  of  Deianira,  and  in  occasional  strokes  of  poetry  in 
the  choruses.  The  character  of  Hercules  is  lipfht,  vindictive, 
and  contemptible. 

We  now  arrive  at  tAvo  plays,  the  heroes  of  which  have  been 
repeatedly  compared  with  one  another,  viz.,  the  "  Ajax"  and 
"  PniLOCTETES  ;"  and  yet  the  catastrophe  in  both  is  different. 
Ajax  is  led  to  death  by  despair  resulting  from  disappointed 
ambition  and  revenge.  It  is  not  the  phrenzied  despair  of  a 
Jocasta,  but  the  deliberate  despondency  that  a  series  of  annoy- 
ances have  wrought  in  a  sensitive  mind.  Like  Cato,  he 
almost  reasons  himself  into  suicide,  but,  unlike  him,  he  has 
no  sublime  hopes  of  futurity  to  gladden  the  act.  The  tender 
and  soothing  character  of  Tecmessa  fails  to  soften  his  stern 
determination,  but  the  sight  of  his  only  son  gives  occasion  to 
one  of  the  noblest  bursts  of  parental  tenderness  found  in  any 
dramatic  Vv'ork.  Still,  there  is  a  selfishness  in  the  honorabiG 
character  of  Ajax.  He  dares  not,  for  his  wife  and  child's  sake, 
endure  the  shame,  and  face  the  enemies,  to  which  he  was  te 
leave  them  suljject.  Trifling  as  is  the  character  of  Teucer. 
there  is  a  warm  and  liealthy  generosity,  and. useful  intrepidity, 
that,  though  less  heroic,  is  more  estimable  than  the  feverish 
passion  of  Ajax. 

Of  his  concluding  farewell  Bulwer  observes:  ''It  is  charac- 
teristic of  the  Greek  temperament  that  the  personages  of  the 
Greek  poetry  ever  bid  a  last  lingering  and  half-reluctant  fiu'e- 


INTRODUCTION.  XV 

well  to  the  ?iin.  There  is  a  masnificent  fullness  of  life  in  those 
children  of  the  beautiful  ilellas.  The  sun  is  to  them  as  a  fa- 
miliar friend ;  the  aliiiction  or  the  terror  of  Hades  is  in  the 
thouiiht  that  its  fields  are  sunless.  The  orb  which  animated 
their  temperate  heaven,  -syhich  ripened  their  fertile  earth,  in 
Nvhich  they  saw  the  type  of  eternal  youth,  of  surpassing  beau- 
ty, of  incarnate  poetry — human  in  its  associations,  and  yet  di- 
vine in  its  nature — is  equally  beloved  and  equally  to  be  mourn- 
ed by  the  maiden  tenderness  of  Antigone,  or  the  sullen  majesty 
of  Ajax." 

Philoctetes  is  the  very  contrary  to  Ajax,  yet,  to  use  the 
Vv-ords  of  Schiegel,  "  if  Ajax  is  honored  by  his  despair,  Philoc- 
tetes is  equally  ennobled  by  Lis  constancy."  Without  the 
comforts,  vv'ithout  the  practical  ingenuity  of  Defoe's  hero,  he 
is  the  classic  Eobinson  Crusoe,  and  spends  a  long  lapse  of 
years  amid  birds  and  beasts,  whose  only  friendliness  was  in 
providing  him  with  food.  The  tortures  of  disease,  and  the 
rankling  remembrance  of  Grecian  ingratitude,  cease  not  to 
harass  him,  yet  his  mind  rises  superior ;  and,  as  Yvlnkelmann 
observes,  Philoctetes,  like  Laocoon,  "  suffers  with  the  suppress- 
ed agony  of  an  heroic  soul  never  altogetlicr  overcome  by  his 
pani.  ^ 

In  perfect  simplicity  and  clear  dramatic  construction  this 
play  almost  deserves  the  encomium  of  an  ingenious  scholar, 
who  styles  it  the  "  masterpiece  of  the  Athenian  stage.''^  There 
is  so  perfect  a  unity  of  events,  and  so  consistent  a  prosopojiocia., 
that  we  are  never  shocked  bv  inconjiTuitv.  "Well  has  Bulwer 
asserted  that  *•  the  character  of  2seoptolemus  is  a  sketch 
v/hich  Shakespeare  alone  could  have  bodied  out."  With  all 
his  natural  generosity  and  lioncr,  he  is  still  easily  persuaded ; 
but,  when  once  aroused  to  shame,  his  better  feelings  remain 
fixed  and  immovable.  The  simple  taking  away  and  restor- 
ing of  the  bow  and  arrows  is  at  once  the  test  of  his  character 

'  Schiegel.  p.  19 J.  ^  Mr.  G.  Bar^-co.  prcf.  to  Philcctelcs. 


x^-i  INTRODUCTION. 

and  the  incident  of  the  play.  If  any  tiling  can  be  found  fault 
with,  it  is  the  entry  of  the  god  at  the  conclusion  of  the  piece. 
But  this  was  necessary  to  preserve  the  consistency  of  Phi- 
loctetes  in  his  hatred  of  the  unworthy  Greeks,  to  aid  the 
interests  of  the  generous  xseoptolemus,  and  —  to  finish  the 
play. 

1  have  but  one  more  remark  to  make,  and  that  is  directed 
against  the  extraordinary  idea  of  AVundcr,  judiciously  disre- 
garded by  Hermann,  that  verses,  particularly  in  the  Tracliinia?, 
were  often  added  by  the  performers.  I  am  perfectly  aware 
that  Garrick,  John  Kemble,  and  Macready  have  successively 
appeared  as  the  remodelers  of  Shakespeare,  or  Beaumont  and 
Fletcher ;  but  I  believe  their  efforts  were  generally  directed  to 
2)opularizinrj  the  plays  they  altered.  Now,  if  this  end  could  be 
answered  by  adding  iimntcUiijihk  verses,  I  have  nothing  to  say. 
If  not,  "SVunder  had  better  seek  to  amend  or  explain  the  many 
passages  lie  can  not  understand,  than  adopt  that  easiest  of  all 
critical  edge-tools,  the  pruning-knife.  AVunder  is  an  able  in- 
terpreter, an  ingenious  man,  and  a  correct  Grecian.  But  for 
the  histrio-critics  of  the  Greek  Drama,  we  have  about  as  m.uch 
belief  in  them  as  in  the  comic  powers  lately  attributed  to  the 
guard  in  the  "  Antigone,"  after  the  joke  had  lain  concealed  for 
rather  more  than  two  thousand  years ! 


(EDI  PUS   REX. 


ARGUMENT  OF  THE  CEDIPUS  REX. 

CEpipl's  was  reproached  with  being  the  supposititious  child  of  Polybus^ 
the  king  of  Corinth,  and  in  disgust  exiled  himself,  and  went  to  Thebes. 
Here  he  solved  the  riddle  of  the  Sphinx,  and  as  a  reward  received  the 
kingdom,  and  the  hand  of  tiie  queen  Jocasta  in  marriage.  A  long 
))iague  ravaged  Thebes,  and,  on  Creon  being  sent  to  Delphi,  the  mur- 
derer of  Laius,  the  former  king  of  Thebes,  was  denounced  as  the  cause 
of  the  evil.  In  his  anxiety  to  discover  the  murderer,  and  through  the 
statements  of  Tiresias,  corroborated  by  those  of  certain  old  servants, 
CEdipus  made  the  fearful  discovery  that  he  had  been  exposed  in  child- 
hood, to  avert  an  awful  prophecy,  which  he  had  unv.ittingh'  fulfilled 
in  the  murder  of  his  father  Laius  on  his  way  from  Corinth  to  Thebes, 
and  in  his  subsequent  cohabitation  with  his  mother  Jocasta.  Jocasta 
hung  herself,  and  CEdipus,  in  despair,  tore  out  his  eyes. — B. 


<EDIPUS   TYRANNUS 


J  3       J 

*         O       JO 


*  ,^ 


DEAMATIS   PEESON^, 


CEDiprs.' 

Priest. 

Creox. 

Chorus  of  Aged  Theba>'s. 

TiRESIAS. 


JOCASTA. 

Messenger. 
Servant  of  Laius. 
Messenger  extraordinart. 


fiEpiPUS.  My  children,  youthful  geueration  of  Cadmus  of 
oM,  what  can  be  [the  meaniug  of]  these  sittings  ye  are 
throno-ing^  hither  before  me,  decorated  with  supphant 
branches?  while  the  city  is  at  the  same  time  fraught  with 
incense-offerings,  and  at  the  same  time  with  both  paean- 
hymns  and  wailings.  AYhich  things,  I  thinking  it  my  duty 
not  to  hear  from  others,  and  those  messengers,*  my  children, 
have  myself  come  hither ;  I,  Oedipus,  styled  by  all^  the  Elus- 
tiious.  But,  O  aged  man,  say,  since  it  naturally  becomes 
thee  to  s}3eak   on    behalf  of  these,  in   what   mood  ye   stand 

^  Arriaii,  ap.  Stob.  S.  97.  28,  hints  that  both  the  CEdipi  were  per'" 
sonated  by  Polus,  a  distinguished  actor,  of  whom  Gelhus  makes  men- 
tion, 7.  5 

2  The  word  "  thronging"  takes  in  both  the  ideas  usuallj  applied  to 
this  word.  Wuiider  takes  it  merely  to  mean  "sitting,  occupying,"  and 
so  Buttmann,  Lexil.  sub  voc.  Cf.  ^sch.  SuppL  595.  Others  render  it 
*' hurrying."  The  word  is  probably  akin  to  6o6r.  See  Erfurdt,  and 
Liddel's  Lexicon.     B. 

^  So  Wundcr,  quoting  Eur.  Orest.  531,  ri  papri'puv  uXKidv  dicovsiv 
Ssl  fJ  d  -f  kiaopCiv  ■Kupa.  This  corresponds  to  the  Latin  exegetical  use 
of  adeo.  But  perhaps  uA?mv  is  merely  redundant  in  opposition  to 
avToc.     B. 

4  From  the  position  of  7tu<7i  it  might  not  be  improper  to  translate 
"the  all-illustrious,"  with  a  construction  like  that  of  v.  40.  See  also 
(Ed.  Col.  1446.  Tr. — This  verse  might  more  poetically  be  rendered, 
"  I,  (Edipus,  by  all  illustrious  height"  It  is  condemned  by  "Wunder  as 
sDurious-     B. 

A 


2  GEDIPUS    TYRAXXUS.  11—30. 

affected  ,  feaiing,'  or  cnrnestly  seeking:;  since  I  vrould  willingly 
give  you  every  succor ;  for  I  were  unleejing  not  to  compassion- 
ate a,  meeting  such  as  this. 

Priest.  ]3ut,  O  Oedipus,  thou  who  rulest  over  my  country^ 
ar,  indeed  thou  beholdest,  of  what  acres  are  we  who  sit  as 
suppliants  before  thine  altars  here  ;"  some  of  us  not  yet  of 
streEgth,tp  wing.ouv  fii2;ht  afar ;  others  priests  w^cighed  down 
with  x}j.d  aire,  i  niy.*«e/f  the  priest  of  Jupiter  ;  and  these  other 
chosen'  df^tlfe 'ycfuth^:  iJut  the  rest  of  the  populace  decked 
.Vitii.'biriRfjJiGSyi  i'3' ^(^ateCi  \i]  the  market-places,  and  near  Loth  « 
•  4T1G?  8k*i5ne's  'p('  Piillas,  land'  /iVlsmenus'  ashes  of  didnation.^ 
For  the'cit}',  as  thbii  thyself  behold,  is  now  over-roughly 
tossing,  and  from  the  depths  of  tlie  bloody  surge  can  no 
longer  lift  her  head  ;  withering  in  the  ripening  husks*  of  the 
soil,  withering  in  the  pasturing  herds  of  kine,  and  in  the  yet 
unborn  labors  of  women :  and  the  fire-bearing  god,  most 
hated  pestilence,  having  darted  down,  ravages  the  city  ;  by 
whom  the  house  of  Cadmus  is  made  empty,  but  dark  Hades 


*  I  have  preserved  the  participles,  to  make  the  translation  of  this 
awkward  passage  more  clear.  After  the  remarks  of  AVunder,  it  seems 
evident  that  dttaavrer  denotes  the /ear  which  led  these  suppliants,  arep- 
yeiv,  to  seek  for  assistance.  A^s  oTspyftv  is  used  to  denote  a  passive 
content  or  satisfaction  (see  Elomf  on  -(Esch..  Prom,  ii.),  so  it  may  pass 
to  another  signification,  by  which  wo  are  said  to  seek  thos3  things  which 
we  should  be  pleased  to  have.  In  (FA.  C.  518,  wc  Und  orep^ov  explained 
by  tteWov  immediately  following,  which  is  just  the  reverse  of  the  present 
sense.  Otherwise,  we  miglit  render  the  passage  :  "  are  ye  fearing  an  im- 
pending, or  enduring  a  present  evil?"  (So  St.  Gregory,  Horn.  i.  in  Ev. 
§  1,  "  Ex  quibus  profecto  omnibus  alia  jam  facta  cernimus,  alia  0  prox- 
imis  Ventura  fonnidaraus.")  Some  may  regard  this  as  a  frigid  antithesis, 
but  CEdii)US,  like  Puff's  hero  in  "The  Critic,"  does  not  ask  for  informa- 
tion for  himself,  but  for  the  benefit  of  the  audience.     B. 

2  The  altars  alluded  to  were  of  various  deities,  placed  by  individuals 
before  their  houses,  as  patriotism  or  private  gratitude  might  dictate.  See 
the  Curculio  of  Plautus,  I.  i.  7 ;  Arist.  "VVasps,  875. 

3  "  Both  the  shrines."  Minerva  had  a  temple  at  Thebes  in  virtue  of 
her  name  Oncoca,  and  another  as  Ismeiiia,  Avhich  latter  name  Apoilo  also 
bore,  and  presided  over  an  altar  of  burnt  sacrifices. 

4  I  have  here  followed  Wuuder.  h/Kup-oi^  must  mean  the  corn  just 
.ripened,  but  blighted  at  the  very  moment  of  bursting,  -repl  clrov  iKi3o'/.t)v, 
in  Thucyd.  iv.  1.  Soon  after  the  epithet  dyovoi^  does  not  mean  "  abor- 
tive," but  "  unborn,"  owing  to  the  strength  of  the  mothers  failing. 
AVunder  appositely  compares  Ilerodot.  vi.  i:59.  Compare  also  Seneca, 
(Edip.  Act.  i.  sc.  2,  v.  33,  nay,  the  whole  description.     B. 


I 


so— 64.  CEDIPU3    TTRAXXUS.  3 

e:rows  rich  ^vit]l  wailings  and  groans.  Now  I  and  tliese 
youths  here  arc  seated  petitioners  by  the  house,  deeming  thee 
not  equal  to  the  gods,  but  of  men  the  first,  ^vhether  for  the 
casualties  of  life,  or  the  interventions  of  the  gods.  AVho, 
indeed,  Avhen  thou  Avast  come  to  ^Cadmus^capital,  didst  put 
an  end  to  the  tribute  of  the  stern  chantress,  which  we  were 
larnishino^ :  and  this  too  neither  knowing:  nor  tauo-ht  bv  us, 
any  strange  knowledge  ;^  but  by  the  prompting  of  god  thou 
art  reputed  and  believed  to  have  righted  our  condition.  Now 
too,  O  head  of  (Edipus,  owned  most  potent  by  all,  we  implore 
thee,  all  prostate  here  before  thee,  to  find  some  help  for  us, 
v.hether  thou,  bv  hearin.nr  the  voice  of  anv  g-od,  or  from  any 
human  source,  knowest  such :  since  to  the  experienced  I 
observe  even  the  issues  of  their  counsels  to  be  the  most  flour- 
ishing. Go,  best  of  mortals,  re-establish  the  state,  go,  take 
good  counsel ;  since  at  present  indeed  this  our  land  celebrates 
thee  as  its  preserver  for  thy  former  zeal — and  may  we  in  no 
wise  remember  thy  reifjn  for  our  havino-  both  ree-ained  cur 
footing  and  afterward  fallen  ;  but  r^iise  up  this  our  city  in 
safety.  For  as  with  propitious  augury  thou  didst  render  to  us 
the  former  lucky  service,  so  in  the  present  instance  be  equal 
[to  thyself].  Since  if  in  sooth  thou  Avilt  govern  this  our  land, 
j.s  thou  dost  swav  it,  it  is  a  fairer  thino^  to  rule  it  with  its  men, 
than  desolate.  For  neither  tower  nor  ship  is  aught,  if  destitute 
cf  men  dwelling  therein. 

QLb.  My  children,  objects  cf  my  pity,  you  have  come 
wishing  for  things  known,  and  not  unknown  to  me  ;  for  well 
am  I  aware  that  ve  are  all  sickenins:,"  and  sickeninir  thouirh 
ye  be,  there  is  not  one   of  you  who  sicken  equally  Avith  me. 


^  77?Jov  can  not  mean  "any  thing  further,"  z.  e.,  than  the  bare  fact  of 
the  riddle  proposed,  as  the  translators  have  supposed  ;  but  t'/Joz'  eldivat 
is  a  farm  peculiarly  applied  to  the  possession  of  occult  knowledge.  Co  in 
Nicolaus  Damascenus,  from  a  MS.  in  the  Escurial,  fol.  3  A,  6  Baftv/M- 
riog.  £1  (h/  Tt  TT/.elov  ~d  dela  sldur,  cvuSu/.'afl  rt/v  rov,ovELpov  07]lit]v. 
And  of  Joseph's  skill  in  dreams,  Clemens  Alexandr,  Strom.  V.  p.  245, 
38.  viov  TOVTOV  ^ri7.uaav~£g  ul  ude/.ool,  tt/Mov  tl  TrpooputzEvcv  Kara  t?/V 
■)vQglv.     B. 

2  "  Diseased''  is  certainly  literal,  but  an  equivocal  term  is  required  to 
express  the  bodily  disease  of  the  people,  and  the  '"hearts'  aching"  of 
G£dipus  in  his  despair.  I  think  "  sicken"  better  expresses  this  double 
sense  of  voaelv  than  "  diseaso."  Others  render  it  by  "  being  distress- 
ed."    U 


4  OEDIPUS    TYRAXXUS.  G5— 89 

For  your  affliction  falls  on  one  alone,  in  liis  own  person  and 
on  none  other ;  uliile  my  soul  siglis  at  once  both  for  the  city 
and  for  myself  and  for  you.  So  that  ye  awake  me  not  indeed 
slumberiuo-  in  repose,  but  know  that  I  already  have  shed 
many  tears,  have  traversed  many  paths  in  the  wanderings  of 
thought ;  and  that  only  mode  of  cure  which  I  had  discovered 
by  careful  scrutiny,  that  have  I  put  in  execution.  For  Creon^^ 
the  son  of  Menoeceus^  my  kinsman  by  marriage,  I  dispatched 
to  the  Pythian-shxi2io_of^AjX)llo,  to  inquire  by  what  deed  or 
word  Imight  deliver  this  city.  And  the  day  being  already 
commensurate  with  the  time  [for  his  return],  pains  me  for  his 
fate,  since  beyond  reasonable  expectation  he  is  away  a  longer 
than  the  due  period.     But  whenever  he  shall  have  arrived,  that 

X instant  I  v.ere  a  villain  not  to  perform  to  the  full  all  that  the 
god  may  reveal. 

Pr.  Nay,  thou  hast  both  well  said,  and  these  too  just  now 
■  sig!jify  to  me  that  Creon  is  approacliing. 

Q5d.  Hear,  king  Apollo,  for  O  that  he  may  have  come 
with  sojne  saviour  fortune  at  least,  even  as  he  is  sparkling  of 
eye. 

Pr.  If  one  may  guess,  however,  he  is  welcome  ;  else  would 
lie  not  be  coming  hither,  his  head  thus  amply  wreathed  with 
all-fruitful  laurel.^ 

(Ed.  Quickly  shall  we  know,  for  he  is  within  reach  of 
hearing  us.  Prince,  my  relation,  son  of  Menoeceus,  Avhat  re- 
port from  the  god  comest  thou  bringing  to  us  ? 

Creon.  Good  :  for  I  assert  that  even  our  grievances,  should 
they  chance  to  have  their  issues  aright,  might  be  altogether 
fortunate." 

CEd.  But  of  what  purport  is  the  oracle  V     For  I  am  neither 

^  The  laurel  crown,  say  the  commentators,  was  the  privilege  of  those 
"quibus  lastse  sortes  obtigerant."  Chremylus  in  the  Plutus,  however, 
will  hardly  allow  the  "  laetas  sortes"  to  be  his  lot,  though  his  slave  wears 
the  chaplet. 

'  A  purposely  dark  answer,  breathing  the  true  Loxiau  spirit. 

^  Gr.  iariu  di  ttoIov  tovkoc  ;  Quid  hoc  scrmonis  est?  Br.  "  TVhat 
mean  thy  words?"  Dale.  'E~or  is  emphatically  an  oracle,  and  moreover 
tlie  expression  tgj  }f  vvi>  loyu  would  be  a  mere  repetition,  if  Brunck's 
translation  were  correct.  In  the  same  passage  the  opposition  of  dpaavQ 
to  -podeiaag  gives  confirmation  to  the  distinction  made  between  t>fjuaog 
and  th'ipaor,  audaeia  and  liducia.  Tu. — I  prefer  "  emboldened"  to  ''rashly 
Bunguiue."     B. 


89—111.  (EDIPUS    TTRANNUS.  6 

emboldened,  nor  yet  prematurely  alarmed,    at   least  by  tby 
present  speech. 

Cr.  If  thou  choosest  to  hear  ^Yhile  these  are  by,  I  am  ready 
to  tell  thee,  or  else  to  retire  within  doors. 

CEb.  Speak  out  to  all,  for  I  endure  more  suffering  for  these 
my  people  than  even  for  my  own  life. 

Cr.  I  will  say  Avhat  I  have  heard  from  the  god.  JKing. 
Ehcebus  openly  enjoins  ns  to  expel  from  the  country  a'  pol- 
lution, as  having  been  bred  in  this  our  laud,  nor  to  foster  what 
is  incurable. 

Q^D.  By  what  kind  of  purification  ?  AYhat  is  the  manner 
of  the  evil  ? 

Cr.  By  banishing,  or  requiting  death  with  death,  since  the 
following  bloodshed  troubles  the  state.' 

QiD.  Whv,  of  what  manner  of  man  does  he  indicate  this 
fate? 

Cr.  We  had  orice^  O  king,  Laiiia  as  the  sovereign  of  this 
land,  ere  thou  didst  regulate  this  state. 

GLd.  I  knew  him  by  hearsay,  for  I  never  as  yet  saw  him  at 
least. 

Cr.  This  man  having  perished,  Apollo  nov»^  clearly  gives  one 
orders  to  punish  his  assassins.^ 

(Ed,  But  Avhere  on  earth  are  these  same  ?  Where  shall  be 
discovered  this  track  of  an  ancient  crime,  hard  to  con. 
jecture  ? 

Cr.  He  said,  in  this  land.  But  what  is  searched  for,  is  to 
bo  got  at,  while  that  which  is  unregarded  escapes. 

^  This  is  much  more  correct  than  "  the  pollution."  It  was  as  yet  un- 
known v.'hat  the  pollution  was,  as  is  evident  from  the  inquiry  of  (Edipus : 
r/V  o  rponog  ri/g  ^v/u-cpopug  ,  which  has  been  wrongly  taken  to  mean, 
"  what  is  the  method  of  averting  the  calamity  ?"     B. 

2  -;';(5'  al/m  jfiudsoi'  tto/uv.  Although  the  translator  has  not  ventured 
to  render  this  otherwise  than  Erfurdt,  Hermann,  and  Elmsley  have  given 
it,  i.  e.,  as  an  accusative  absolute,  and  with  the  word  rode  referring  to 
something  subsequent,  he  has  still  a  doubt  whether  iori  might  not  be 
understood,  and  the  passage  construed  thus :  "  Since  this  is  a  case  of 
bloodshed  troubling  the  city,"  The  ansvv^er  of  Oedipus  will  then  run 
thus :  '•  How  so  ?  for  of  what  manner  of  man,"  etc. ;  but  it  hardly  seems 
natural  that  (Edipus  should  interrupt  one  who  indicated  (as  is  done  by 
-  (h,  according  to  the  critics)  his  purpose  of  immediately  proceeding  to 
specify  the  murder.  Tr. — Another  translation  has  "  since  this  blood  \a 
a'j  pernicious  as  winter  to  the  city."     B, 

3  But  see  my  note  on  v.  140.     B. 


6  CEDIPUS    TYR ANNUS.  112—140, 

Q^D.  But  is  it  in  the  liouse,  or  in  the  field,  or  in  anotlier  land, 
that.  L;:"iiis  encounters  this  bloody  death  ? 

Cr.  Quitling  home,  as  he  told  us,  to  consult  the  oracle,  he 
never  retained  home,  as  he  had  departed. 

G£d.  And  was  no  messenger,  nor  partaker  of  his  journey,  a 
■witness  to  this,  from  whom  gaining  intelligence  one  might  have 
used  it  ? 

Cr.  No ;  for  they  are  dead,  except  one  individual,  who,  hav- 
ing fled  in  terror,  could  tell  for  certain  nothing  he  saw,  but  onei 
fact. 

CEd.  Of  v»"hat  nature  that  fact  ?  for-  one  thin 2:  mio-ht  find 
means  to  learn  many,  could  we  lay  hold  of  but  a  slender  found- 
ation of  Iiope. 

C[{.  lie  said  that  robbers,  having  encountered  him,  slew 
him,  not  by  the  valor  of  one  arm,  but  with  a  number  of 
hands. 

Q^D.  How  then  would  the  bandit,  had  there  been  no  tam- 
perings  by  bribes  from  hence,  have  reached  such  a  pitch  of 
audacity  as  this  ? 

Cr.  This  Avas  suspected ;  but  amid  disasters  there  came 
forward  no  one  as  the  avenger  of  Laius  now  no  more. 

CEd.  But  what  kind  of  distress  interfering,  when  the 
monarch^  had  thus  fallen,  checked  you  from  sifting  out  this 
matter  ? 

Cr.  The  Sphinx,  mysterious^_son^stress,  compelled  us  to  look 
to  that  which  was  before  our  feet,  having  abandoned  what  "was 
obscure. 

Old.  But  from  its  first  cause  will  I  bring  it  to  light  again. 
For  right  wortliily  has  Phoebus,  and  worthily  hast  thou  set 
on  foot  this  pref^ent  examination  in  tlie  cause  of  the  deceased  : 
so  that  deservedly  ye  will  see  me  also  your  abettor,  avenging 
at  once  my  land  here,  and  the  god.  For  in  behalf,  not  of 
my  more  distant  friends,  but  myself  of  myself,  shall  I  dis- 
perse  this  pollution.  Since  whoever  it  was  that  murdered 
him,  he  might  perhaps  wish  to'  take  vengeance  on   me  too 

'  I  prefer  taking  rvpavvidog  as  abstract  for  concrete,  with  the  old 
translation.     B. 

-  This  is  ccrtaiiil}"  the  usual  sense  of  Tifuonav.  But  Wunder  thinks 
tlio  sense  of  " slayin;^"  or  "killing"  more  suitable,  and  thinks  that  ia 
V.  105,  ;i;f«p'  TiiMpclr  conveys  the  like  idoa.  (J ranting,  as  I  do,  that  this 
sense  is  more  suitable  (and  I  think  defensible)  in  tl.e  present  passage, 


141—162.  CEDIPUS    TYR ANNUS.  7 

with  like  hand.  In  supporting  Ms  cause,  therefore,  I  advan- 
tage myself.  But  with  what  speed  ye  may,  my  children,  do 
you  on  your  part  arise  from  otf  your  seats,^  taking  up  these 
branches  of  supplication ;  but  let  some  one  else  assemble 
hither  the  people  of  Cadmus,  since  I  purpose  to  take  every 
step.  For  we  will  prove  ourselves  either  with  heaven's  aid 
prosperous  cr  undoiie. 

Pr.  My  children,  let  us  rise;  since  even  for  the  sake  of 
those  things  ^  this  man  promises,  came  we  hither.  But  may 
Phoebus,  who  has  sent  us  these  divinations,  come  with  them 
both  a  deliverer  and  as  a  healer  to  our  sickness. 

Chorus. 

O  svreetly-speaking  orac'e  of  Jove,  why  canst  thou  have 
come  from  Pytho  stored  with  gold,  to  illustrious  Thebes  1  I 
am  on  the  l^ife^'in  my  timorous  spirit,  quivering  with  dismay, 

0  healer,  Delian,  Poean,  awfully  anxious  about  thee,  as  to 
what  matter  thou  wilt  bring  to  pass  for  me,  either  at  once,  or 
hereafter  in  the  revolving  seasons.  Tell  me,  thou  child  of 
golden  hope,^  immortal  Voice.  First  I  invoke  thee,  daughter 
of  Jove,  immortal  Minerva,  and  thy  sister,  protectress  of  our 
soil,  x\rtemis,  who*  sits  enthroned  on  her  glorious  circling 
chair  in  the  market-place,  and  far-darting  Apollo :  oh,  bo  ye 

1  am  even  more  certain  of  v.  140.  where,  in  roig  ahrohrar  ;^eip^. 
Tiuupelu  we  have  "  death  for  death"  implied  iu  an  almost  pro\^erbial 
manner.  So  ^sch.  Choeph.  312,  ilvrl  6^  '!TAT]y?/c  ^oviag  ^oviav 
UA7jy})v  TwivLj.  dpdcavTi  Tradelv  TpLytipuv  fivOog  rude  duvei.  C£  Eum. 
264.     B. 

^  Yv'hen  the  request  v\^as  granted,  tlie  suppliants  took  up  the  boughs, 
which  tiiey  had  previously  laid  on  the  altar,  and  departed.  See  Wun- 
der's  1st  Excursus  on  v.  3.     B. 

2  'For  e^ayyOJ-eTrti,  "  promises,"  cf.  Eurip.  Keracl.  531.  Kd^ayye/.'/.oiiai 
OvT/aiceiv  (j.de'k(^C)v  tuivSe  KauavrT/g  v~ep.     B. 

^  Dr.  Spillan  has  rightly  seen  that  Fame  has  nothing  to  do  with  the 
matter.  ^uLia  is  the  voice  of  the  oracle  hero  invoked.  The  construc- 
tion of  KeK/u)i^ei'OQ  soon  after  (for  which  the  translator  read  iceiUMtitvu) 
1-3  well  defended  by  Wunder.     B. 

■1  There  is  much  difficulty  about  the  epithet  EviiTiea,  which,  if  considered 
as  the  Epic  accusative  for  evic'Asd,  violates  the  meter.  Respecting  tho 
epithet  of  Artemis,  EvK/.eta  (whence  Brunek  and  Elmsley  read  EvK/.ia), 
see  Wunder,  and  Pausanias  i.  14,  and  ix.  17.  On  tho  many  meanings 
assigned  to  KVKAnh'ra,  see  Wundc^r.  The  most  plausible  seems  to  bo 
Dr.  Spillan's:   '•  tiie  scat  onch-cled  by  the  forum."     B. 


8  (EDIPUS    TY II ANNUS.  1G3— 186. 

timely  present  to  me,  three  severnl  averters  of  destruction,  if 
ever,  iu  tlic  case  of  a  previous  calamity  also  hovering  over  my 
country,  ye  thoroughly  exterminated  the  flame  of  mischief,  now 
too  come  ;  ye  gods,  for  I  sutler  incalculable  miseries  ;  nay,  my 
Avhole  people  to  a  man  is  sickening ;  nor  is  there  among  us 
a  weapon  of  precaution,  wherewith  one  shall  defend  himself; 
for  neither  do  the  productions  of  our  celebrated^  soil  thrive, 
nor  in  childbed  do  our  women  recover  from  their  poignant 
throes ;  ^  but  one  upon  another  mightcst  thou  see,  even  as  a 
well-fled2:ed  bird,  more  fiercely  than  uncontrollable  fire,^ 
speeding  toward  the  shore  of  the  western  god/  In  the  un- 
counted hosts  of  whom  the  city  is  perishing,  and  the  deadly^ 
generations  of  men  impitied  arc  lying  without  a  tear  (to  their 
*  memory)  on  the  plain  ;  while  among  them  wives  and  gray- 
haired  mothers  withal,  some  from  this,  some  from  that 
quarter,  along  the  rising  altar-slope  as  suppliants,  wail  sadly 
because  of  their  deplorable  afflictions.     And  clear  bursts  forth 


^  Bruuck  says  that  one  codex  reads  kavtu,  but  the  plain  cf  Boeotia  is 
particularized  by  ancient  writers,  and,  among  others,  by  Thucydides  in 
his  preface,  for  its  fertility.  Tr. — I  should  prefer  taking  k/.i  rJf  as  an 
epithet  of  the  earth  simply.     13. 

2  drexovai,  "bear  up  with."  All  the  commentators  seem  to  coincide 
in  accei^ting  Hesychius's  interpretation  of  Irjio^,  as  translated. 

3  In  the  Hecuba  of  Euripides,  the  anarchy  of  a  ship's  crew  is  termed, 
Kpcicauv  TTvpoc;,  in  a  similar  sense  to  that  given  in  this  translation  ;  yet 
the  second  interpretation  of  the  scholiast,  "too  fast  for  the  (funeral)  fires 
though  unquenched,"  derives  plausibility  from  Thucydides'  account  of 
(IvaiaxvvTOL  V7/Kai,  ii.  52. 

4  "  Western  god."  Xeminem  pra3terea  novi  qui  sic  Plutonem  vocavc- 
rit,  TTopEv^  'AxtpovTog  duTu  Trap''  evgklov  habet  Pindarus  Pyth.  ii.  str.  2. 
Vide  et  Antig.  806,  7."  Musgrave.  In  the  peroration  of  Lysias' Oration 
against  Andoeides  in  this  passage,  '"To  expiate  this  pollution"  (tho 
mutilation  of  the  Ilermaj),  "  the  priestesses  and  i)ricsts,  turning  toward 
tho  setting  sun,  the  dwelling  of  the  infernal  gods,  devoted  with  curses 
the  sacrilegious  wretch,  and  shook  tlieir  purple  robes,  in  the  manner  pre- 
scribed by  that  law  which  has  been  transmitted  from  earhest  times." 
Mitford,  Ilist.  of  Greece,  c  xxii.  sect.  2. 

5  The  reading  OavaTrj(^:'ip(j  was  adopted  by  all  tho  translators,  except 
a  recent  one,  wlio  renders  OamrTid-.pn  simply  "dead."  I  have  rendered 
it  by  "  deadh',"  for,  as  "Wunder  well  remarks,  contagion  rendered  then> 
so,  and  prevented  them  meeting  with  the  customary  mourning  and  funeral 
rites.     Cf.  Seneca,  Qidip.  G2.     "  Quin  luctu  in  \pso  luctus  cxoritur  novus, 

Sua^quo  circa  funus  exequiie  cadunt Decst  terra  tumulis,  jam 

rogus  silva)  ncgant."     L. 


186—224.  (EDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  9 

the  paean  antliom,  and  a  sorrow-breathing  voice  chimin o-  in. 
AVherefore,  O  golden  daughter  of  Jove,  send  thine  aid,  fair 
of  aspect,  and  make  the  ravening  ]\Iars,  -who  now  unarmed 
with  brazen  shield  rushing  en  with  loud  roars,  scorches  me, 
to  turn  his  back  in  homev.ard  huriying  flight,  an  outlaw  from 
my  country,  either  to  the  vast_^r^^f  Am^ihitiite,.  or  to  that 
inhospitiible  harborage  the  Thracian  breakers ;  for,  in  fine, 
if  night  have  spared  a  rol i c, "^ay  assails'  Tt 7  Which  (Mars), 
O  thou  that  wieldest  the  sovereignity  of  the  fiery  lightnino-,  O 
Jove  our  sire,  blast  by  thy  thunderbolt.  Thine  invincible 
arrows  also,  O  lord  of  light,"  from  the  golden  twisted  horns 
of  thy  bow  would  I  gladly  celebrate  as  champions  sent  forth 
to  our  aid,  and  the  fiery  torches  of  Diana,  wherewith  she 
scours  the  Lycianmountains  :  liim  of  the  golden  miter,  too,  I 
call,  surnamed!°~of  tTiTsour  land  Bacchus  Evius,  of  aspect 
flushed  with  wine,  fellow-rambler  of  the  Msenados,  to  approach, 
flaming  with  beamy  pine-torch,  upon  the  god  unhonored 
among  gods.^ 

(Ed.  Thou  petitionest;  but  for  thy  petition,  if  thou  be 
willing  to  hear  and  receive  these  m}^  words,  and  to  give  thy 
attention  to  the  disease,  thou  mightest  obtain  succor  and 
alleviation  of  thy  miseries  :  which  words  I  shall  speak  as  a 
stranger  to  this  tale  before  us,  a  stranger  to  the  ciime  com- 
mitted. For  I  by  myself  could  not  trace  the  matter  far,  un- 
less  I  had  some  clew  :  but  now,  seeinij  that  I  am  enrolled 
among  cur  citizens'  a  citizen  of  latest  date,  to  all  you  Cad- 
maeans  I  make  proclamation  thus  v'  Whatsoever  man  of  you 

1  Oa/a//of  I  have  rendered  "grot,"  which  seems  more  poetical  than 
"  bower,"  '"bed,"  or  "chamber,"  when  apphed  to  Amphitrite.     B. 

2  The  old  word  7.vKr]  or  AVKoq  (wlience,  probably,  the  Latin  lux\ 
forms  /.VK6(j)vg  and  /.vnupac.  The  latter  word  occurring  in  Apolloniua 
Rhodius,  Argon,  i.  198,  first  suggested  to  the  translator  of  this  play  an 
idea  which  he  is  happy  to  find  sanctioned  by  Maltby's  autJiority  (v. 
/.vK£Lo^\  that  even  the  Sophoclean  avkoktovo^  is  one,  amocg  many  other 
fanciful  substitutes,  for  the  true  origin  of  this  epithet.  Te. — So  also 
Miiller,  Dor.  ii.  6,  §  8;  but  I  should  prefer  retaining  "Lycian  King." 
Cf.  ^Esch.  Sept.  c.  Th.  145.     B. 

^  (iTiOTi/xog,  Pindar,  Pyth.  ii.  80 : 

Tovov  v-£p(pla?.ov, 

Mora,  Kal  fiovov,  ovr    ev  ar- 

dpuat  ycpaa6opov.  ovr''  tv  OeQv  vofxoic. 

*  Elmsley  and  '\^"under  read  (Ivrog  for  ugtoc,  which  seems  preferable.  B. 
v-ne^E/.L.v  roi'-'iKAima,  "crimen  confitendo  diluens."     Elm.s.      "Con- 


10  (EDIPU3    TYRANNUS.  225—253. 

chances  to  know  of  Laius  son  of  Labdacus,  by  what  man  be 
fell,  him  I  command  "to  irialce  full  confession  to  me.  And 
whether  he  fears,  a^,  having  to  divulge  from  concealment  the 
impeachment  himself  against  himself;  let  him,  seeing  he  shall 
sutler  nothing  else  unwelcome,  but  shall  quit  the  country  un- 
harmed ;  or  Avhether  on  the  other  hand,  any  one  have  known 
another'  from  another  land  as  such,  let  him  not  be  silent  as  to 
the  assassin,  for  his  reward  I  will  pay,  and  gratitude  shall 
accrue  to  him  besides.  But  if,  on  the  contrary,  ye  shall  be  dumb, 
and  any  one  apprehensive  either  on  his  friend's  account,  or 
even  on  his  own,  shall  reject  my  words,  ye  m.ust  needs  hear 
from  me  what  I  shall  do  hereafter,  /l  prohibit  any  one  of  this 
land,  of  which  I  wield  the  powers  and  royalties,  from  either 
receiving  or  accosting,  from  making  a  communicant  with 
himself  or  either  vows  or  sacrifices  to  the  gods,  and  from 
apportioning  the  lavers  of  holy  water  to  this  man,  whoever 
he  is :  but^  I  command  that  all  thrust  him  from  their  homes, 
as  this  man  being  the  defilement  upon  us,  as  the  Pythian 
oracle  of  the  divinity  has  just  now  revealed  to  me.  Such  an 
ally  then  am  I  both  to  the  deity  and  the  mortal  who  is  dead. 
But  I  imprecate  on  the  perpetrator,  whether  he  have  escaped 
detection  being  some  single  person,  or  vdth  more,  that,  evil- 
doer as  he  is,  ho  may  in  evils  drag  out  an  unhappy  existence. 
But  should  he  be  an  inmate  in  these  my  halls  v.ith  mv  knowl- 
edge, I  pray  that  I  may  suiTer  the  "very  penalties"  which  I 
iiave  just  now  invoked  on  these.  But  on  you  I  strictly  impose 
the  performance  of  all  this,  both  en  my  own  behalf,  and  of 

ditum  promens."  Hermann;  who  quotes  the  Electra,  1411,  where  the 
schohast's  interpretation  is  plainer  than  ]iis  own  ;  and  Eurip.  Hipp,  629 
(ed.  Monk),  wliere  Monk  says,  "  hunc  versum  forsan  omitti  potuisse  ceii- 
suit  Valkenairius;"  and  where  the  idea  of  draining  silently  off,  seems 
as  apposite  as  condiium  promens,  when  apphed  to  u/,i3ov  duudruv.  In 
the  4th_book  of  Thucjdides,  c.  83,  the  better  authorities  have  v~£^'eleti\ 
for  v7ce^e7,6Elv  tu  (Jfnu,  which  is  most  aptly  rendered  "to  remove  out 
of  the  way."  The  reader  must  choose  between  the  note  and  the  text, 
which  follows  Hermann.  Tr. — Wundor's  interpretation,  derived  fi-oin 
Matthias,  is  as  follows :  "  et  si  mctuit  (sc.  vttQv  ri^  Tcuvra  crjuaiveiv 
Ifiol)  crimen  cfcdis,  cujus  ipse  reus  sit,  surripiat.  sive  subterfugiat,  et  in 
ternim  percgTinam  abeat ;  nullum  enim  alia  patietur  malum,''  ^Elmsley's 
view  seems  simplest.     B. 

1  Wunder  approves  of  the  emendation  of  Nevius,  x^Pk  for  x^^ovbg.  Bui 
Vauvillicrs  more  neatly  proposes,  ua-i,r,  i)  '^d'A/jjc  x<foi'6r.     C. 

^  Kg'uvu  must  be  taken  from  the  preceding  drraiuSu.    B. 


254— 2S5  CEDIPUS    TYRAXXUS.  H 

the  god,  and  of  tliis  our  land,  tlius  without  its  fruits  and 
■without^  the  o'ods  brouo-ht  to  decay.  For  not  even  if  the 
matter  had  not  been  taken  up  by  the  god,  ought  you  in  rea- 
son to  leave  it  thus  unatoned,  -when  the  best  of  men,  and 
your  monarch,  had  perished,  but  thoroughly  to  sift  it :  but 
now,  since  it  is  I  who  possess  the  authority  which  he  held 
before,  who  possess  too  his  bed,  and  the  same  wife  to  raise 
up  seed ;  and  since  a  common  offspring  to  his  in  common 
would  have  been  of  her  born,  had  not  issue  unhappily  failed 
him,  whereas  now  fote  has  fallen  violently  on  his  head  ;  for 
these  causes  I  will  thus  do  battle  for  him,  even  as  it  were 
mine  own  father ;  and  will  resort  to  all  means  in  seeking  to 
take  the  doer  of  his  murder  to  the  son  of  Labdacus,  and  of 
JBalydorus,  and  of  earlier  Cadmus,  and  of  the  ancient  Age- 
nor  :  arid  for  those  ^\^cr!ail  to  perform  these  orders,  I  pray  the 
go3s  to  aiiov/  to  spring  neither  seed-crop  to  them  from  their 
land,  no,  nor  children  from  their  wives ;  but  that  they  may 
be  wasted  away  by  their  present  doom,  and  by  one  yet  more 
hateful  than  this.  But  to  vou  the  other  Cadmseans,  unto  as 
many  as  these  designs  arc  acceptable,  may  both  the  friendly 
power,  Justice,  and  all  the  gods'  weal,  be  present  evermore. 

Ch.  Even  as  thou  hast  involved  me  in  a  curse,  thus,  O 
king,  will  I  speak  :  for  neither  was  I  the  slayer,  nor  ha\e  I 
power  to  disclose  that  slayer.  But  this  same  question  it  was 
the  part  of  Phcebus  who  gave  the  message  to  have  it  declared, 
namely,  who  on  earth  has  done  the  deed. 

(Ed.  Thou  hast  rightly  spoken.  But  to  compel  the  gods  to 
that  which  they  shall  not  be  pleased  to  do,  could  no  man  have 
power. 

Cn.  I  v/ould  fain  suggest  the  second  step  after  this  which 
occurs  to  me. 

GLd.  'Nay,  even  if  there  be  a  third,  see  thou  omit  not  tc> 
give  it  utterance. 

Ch.  I  know  that  kingJ|_T2resias  most  especially  has  insight 
into  the    same  things  with  king  Apollo,  from  whom  one  in- 

^  udiug,  "neglected  by  the  gods."  So  El.  1181,  and  below,  661,  eTrei 
uOcog  ddi/.og.  . .  .6/.oluav.     B. 

^  The  expression  dva^  refers  here  to  the  functions  of  king,  priest,  and 
prophet,  which  were  united  from  the  earliest  times,  and  whicli  neither 
the  Athenians  nor  Romans,  wlien  they  abolished  the  regal  power,  dared 
nominally  to  separate,  but  still  retained  their  titular  BaatAevg  and  re*. 


12  (EDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  286—319. 

quiring  of  these  matters,  O  king,  might  derive  the  clearest 
knowledge  of  them. 

CEn.  liut  not  even  this  have  I  managed  as  a  slotlifiil  work, 
for  I  have  dispatched,  at  Creon's  word,  two  to  fetch  him  ;  and 
long  since  ho  moves  my  wonder  by  his  non-attendan»ce. 

Cii.  AVell,  certainly  the  other  sloiies  are  absurd,  and  stale. 

(Ed.  To  what  purpose  these  same  ?  for  I  scrutinize  every 
report. 

Cn.  He  was  said  to  have  fallen  by  some  wayfarers. 

Q^D.  I,  too,  have  heard  so  ;  but  the  Vvitness  of  this  no  one 
knows. 

Ch.  But  surely,  if  he  possess  one  particle  of  fear,  at 
least  he  will  not  endure  hearino-  such  curses  as  these  of  thine. 

CEd.  Ilim  v.'ho  can  have  no  horror  of  the  deed,  neither 
will  a  word  overawe. 

Ch.  Yet  is  there  one  who  shall  expose  him,  for  those  yon- 
der are  slow  conducting:  hither  the  heavenlv  seer ;  in  whom 
alone  of  men  is  the  truth  innate. 

Q^D.  Tiresias,  thou  who  dost  contemplate  all  things,  both 
(hose  which  may  be  taught,  and  those  which  are  unspeakable, 
and  those  which  are  of  heaven,  and  those  that  tread  our  earth ; 
under  what  a  disease  our  city  labors,  even  though  thou  seest 
not,  thou  must  still  be  sensible  :  wherein  we  discover  thee,  O 
king,  our  only  protector  and  deliverer.  For  Phoebus,  should 
thou  be  not  informed  of  it  by  the  messengers,  has  sent  word 
in  return  to  us  who  sent  to  ask  that  release  from  this  our 
present  sickly  state  alone  could  come,  if,  ha\ing  rightly  dis- 
covered, we  should  put  to  death  those  who  killed  Laius, 
or  send  them  into  banishment  from  the  land.  Do  thou, 
therefore,  on  thy  part,  grudging  us  neither  response  from 
auguiy,  nor  if  thou  hast  other  way  of  divination  whatever, 
redeem  thyself  and  the  state,  redeem  me,  redeem  the  whole 
pollution  of  the  dead.^  For  in  thy  hands  we  are ;  but  for  a 
man  to  do  benefit  from  such  means  as  ho  may  have  and  can 
use,  is  of  labors  the  most  glorious. 

Tiresias.  Woe,  woe,  liow  dreadful  to  be  wise,  where  it 
can  not  pay  its  profits  to  the  wise.  Alas !  for  though  I  knew 
this  well,  I  altogether  forgot  it,  else  had  I  not  come  hither. 

CEd.  Nay,  what  is  this?  how  dispirited  ai't  thou  come  to 


u^^ ' 


ro 


'  That  is,  "  all  that  the  death  of  Laius  has  polluted." 


320—338.  OEDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  13 

Tix  Dismiss  rae  to  my  home,  for  most  easily  wilt  thou 
endure  thy  doom  and  I  mine,  if  thou  wilt  be  prevailed  on  by  me. 

CEd.  Thou  hn^t  said  what  is  neither  lawful  nor  friendly  to 
this  tiiy  country  which  nursed  thee,  in  depriving  her  of  this 
divulgeiiient. 

TiR.  Why,  I  observe  that  neither  does  thy  speech  proceed 
from  thee  seasonably ;  I  do  it,  therefore,  that  I  may  not  sutler 
the  same  evil  on  my  part. 

Ch.  Do  not,  in  the  name  of  the  gods,  if  aware  of  this,  be 
averse  [to  speak],  since  we  all  here,  prostrate  as  suppliants, 
kneel  to  thee. 

TiR.  Because  ye  are  all  infatuated :  but  I ,^  no,  never ; 

be  it  that  I  may  not,  by  telling  my  own,  unfold  thy  miseries. 

Gld.  What  sayest  thou  ?  though  knowing  it,  wilt  thou  not 
give  it  utterance,  but  thinkest  thou  to  betray  us,  and  destroy 
the  state. 

_TiR.  I  will  grieve  neither  thyself  nor  thee.  Wherefore 
dost  thou  vainly  probe  these  matters/^  for  never  shalt  thou 
learn  them  from  me.  -*-•«««-«-'- 

(Ed.  What,  worst  of  villains  !  for  thou  on  thy  part  wouldst 
enrao-e  the  temper  even  of  a  stone  ;  wilt  thou  never  declare  it 
at  aH,  but  shov/  thyself  thus  unsoftened  and  unsatisfying  ? 

TiR.  Thou  hast  complained  of  my  ill  humor,  but  thine  own 
that  dwells  with  thee  hast  thou  not  discerned  f  yet  blamest 
thou  me. 

1  "  But  I ."     This  is  translated  after  tlie  punctuation  of  Hermann's 

edition.  In  his  addenda,  however,  Elmsley  considers  Erfurdt  to  have 
correctly  interpreted  the  passage,  the  second  //?/  to  redound,  and  the 
order  to  be,  eyd  6e  oh  jiii~ore  £K(p/jvu>  (id  est,  ov-ore  eKonvQ)  ru  ad 
KfiKu,  ug  ui>  elno)  Tu  £/j,u  fiavTevfiara.  "  Never  imagine  that  I  will  bring 
to  Kght  thy  misfortunes,  in  order  that  I  may  utter  my  prophecies."  Tr. 
— Dindorf  s  text  seems  unintelligible.     B. 

■•^  Hermann  considers  that  Eustatiiius  is  right  in  attributing  to  these 
words  an  allusion  to  Jocasta,  and  says,  that  the  expression  duov  vaiovaav 
is  otherwise  useless  ;  which,  however,  it  would  not  be,  since  it  contains 
the  very  reason  which  gives  Tiresias's  remonstrance  so  much  force.    The 
ambiguity,  if  any  ought  to  be,  is  well  preserved  in  these  lines : 
"  Thou  has  reproved  my  warmth,  yet  little  know'st 
What  dwells  in  thine  own  bosom,  though  on  me 
Thou  heap'st  reproach." 

Dale's  Trans,  vol.  i.  32.  Tr. 
See  V.  414,  and  of.  Nonnus  Dionys.  xxv.  20. — ije  fSoijau  Uarpocpovov 
noatv  via  Trapevvd^ovra  TeKovay.  Statius  Theb.  1,  68  ;  Si  dulces  furiag, 
et  lamentabile  matris  Connubium  gavisus  ini.     B, 


14  OEDIPUS    TYRANNU3.  339—365. 

(Ed.  I  do ;  for  Avho  \vould  not  be  incensed  at  hearing  sucli 
AYords  as  those,  in  -which  tliou  now  settest  at  naught  this 
city  ? 

TiR.  Why,  they  ^vill  come  to  pass,  even  though  I  suppress 
them  in  silence. 

OEd.  Oughtest  not  thou,  then,  to  inform  me  of  at  least  that 
-which  vnll  come  to  pass? 

Tm.  I  can  tell  thee  no  further ;  \vherenpon,  if  thou  Avilt, 
he  exasperate  -svith  whatever  rage  is  most  ferocious. 

(Ed.  Ay,  on  my  soul,  and  I  Avill  at  least  pass  over  nothing, 
so  enraged  am  I,  of  what  I  am  apprised  of.  For,  knovr,  tliou 
art  suspected  by  m.e  both  to  have  helped  engender  the  deed, 
and  to  have  done  it,  in  all  but  kihing  him  with  thine  hands; 
nav,  liadst  thou  possessed  sight,  even  this  deed  its  very  self 
had  I  asserted  to  be  thine  alone. 

TiR.  Is  it  even  so  ? 1  charge  thee  to  abide  by  the  proc- 
lamation, even  that  which  thou  hast  promulged,  and  from  this 
day  forth  to  accost  neither  these  present,  nor  me ;  for  that  thou 
art  the  unhallowed  detiler  of  this  land. 

(Ed.  Hast  thou  thus  shamelessly  mven  vent  to  these  words 
of  thine,  and  canst  thou  possibly  expect  that  thou  shalt  acquit 
•  thyself  of  this  ? 

TiR.  I  stand  acouitted,  for  I  cherish  truth  in  its  streno-th. 
(Ed.  At   whose   hand    schooled  \  for   surely  not   from  lliy 
art. 

TiR.  At  thine  ;  for  thou  hast  provoked  me  reluctant  to 
speak. 

Q^D.  "What  manner  of  speech  ?  speak  again,  that  I  may  the 
rather  apprehend. 

Tin.  Understood'st  thou  not  before,  or  temptest  thou  my 
v»'ords  ? 

(Ed.  jSTo,  not  at  least  to  have  termed  it  intelligible ;  but  say 
again. 

TiR.  I  say  thou  art  the  murderer  of  the  man  whose  mur- 
dererthou  seekest. 

(Ed.  But  in  no  v.isc  with  impunity  shalt  thou  twice  at  least 
utter  taunts. 

TiR.  Shall  I  tell  thee,  then,  one  other  thing  also,  that  thou 
raayest  be  the  more  angered  ? 

(Ed.  As  much  at  least  as  thou  inclinest,  since  it  will  bo  said 
in  vain. 


3GG— 392.  (EDIPU3    TYRANXUS.  15 

TiK.  I  amrm  tiiee  fo  he  unconsciously  Loldinof  the  most 
ehameful  intercourse  Avith  thy  dearest  friends,  and  not  to  see  in 
what  state  of  evil  thou  art. 

CEd.  And  dost  think  thou  shalt  always  say  these  thino-s  even 
exulting'ly  ? 

TiR.  Yes,  if  at  least  there  be  any  mio-ht  in  truth. 

CEd.  Xay,  there  is,  save  to  thee ;  but  to  thee  there  is  not 
this,  since  thou  art  blind  both  in  thine  ears  and  thy  mind  and 
.thine  eyes. 

'  TiR.  But  thou  at  any  rate  art  Avretched  in  reproachinir  me 
with  this,  y>herewith  is  there  not  one  of  these  present  Avho 
Avill  not  speedily  reproach  thee. 

CEd.  Thou  art  fostered  by  night  alone,  so  that  thou  couldst 
never  do  either  me  or  any  other,  ^vhoever  he  be,  that  looks  on 
the  light,  a  mischief. 

TiR.  For  it  is  not  fated  thou  shouldst  fall,  at  least  by  me, 
since  Apollo  is  sufficient,  ^vhose  care  it  is  to  accomplish  ali 
this. 

(Ed.  Are  these  the  inventions  of  Creon,  or  thine  ov.n  ? 

TiR.  Xay,  Creon  is  no  bane  to  thee,  but  thyself  to  thyself. 

CEd.  0  ^vealth  and  sovereignty,  and  art  surpassing  art  in 
this  life  of  constant  emulation,  how  great  is  the  jealousy 
stored  up  am.ong  you !  if  at  least  for  the  sake  of  this  my 
power,  which  the  city  reposed  in  my  hands,  a  free  gift  and 
not  solicited,  Creon  the  loyal,  my  former  friend,  secretly 
supplanting  me  is  longing  to  eject  me  from  it,  having 
suborned  a  sorcerer  such  as  this,  a  vamper-up  of  plots,  a  ^vily 
mountebank,  a  y>i'etch  that  hath  eyes  only  for  his  gains,  but 
as  to  his  art  v»as  born  blind.  For  if  not,  come  tell  me, 
-wherein  thou  art  a  true  seer  ?  Hovr  didst  thou  not,  when  the 
-monster   of  v^ild  song^    vras   here,   pronounce    £ome    spell  of 

^  ■/)  paii)0)Sdr  Kvuv.]  A  puzzling  title  to  translate  ;  but  the  Spliinx  was 
all  a  puzzle,  and  would  have  made  a  great  figure  in  these  days  of  Egyp- 
tian statues  and  hierogh-phics,  particularly  as  her  acted  charades  were 
better  than  her  spoken,  at  least  they  nonplussed  the  poor  Thebans  Kore, 
being  of  that  ancient  kind  which  he  Vv-ho  receives  ariirht  "had  need  from 
head  to  foot  well  understand."  For  the  translation,  if  any  one  have  so 
much  of  Euripides,  or  rather  Diogenes,  in  liim  as  to  prefer  "enigmatical 
bitch,"  he  may  find  in  the  poem  of  Christabelle  one  of  the  same  breed, 
and  most  "  enigmatical."'  vv.  2  et  seq.  Tr. — !:vcoi>  is  applied  to  the 
Sphinx,  as  to  the  hydra  by  Eurip.  Here.  F.  1277,  and  to  the  Harpies  in 
Apolion.   13,   280.     So  Brunck.      See   also  ^sch.  Prom.    803.     Soph. 


16  (EDIPUS    TYRAMXUS.  393—416. 

deliveranoe  to  tlies8  our  citizens  ?  And  vet  her  riddle  at 
least  was  not  for  a  cliance-comer  to  expound,  but  required 
divination,  ^Yl^cll  tliou  plainly  exposedst  thyself  as  not  pos- 
sessing, either  from  birds  or  known  from  any  one  of  the  gods ; 
but  I,  Avhen  I  was  come,  the  nothing-knowing  CEdipus,  put  her 
down,  having  mastered  it  by  judgment,  and  not  ha\ang  learned 
it  from  birds :  I,  whom  forsooth  thou  must  try  to  depose,  ex- 
pecting that  thou  shalt  stand  next  in  place  near  the  Cretonean 
throne.^  To  thy  cost  methinks  both  thou  and  he  that  con- 
trived all  this  will  go  exorcising  pollutions :  nay,  but  that  thou 
seemest  an  old  man,  to  thv  cost  hadst  thou  known^  what  man- 
ner  of  things  they  be  thou  purposest. 

Gh.  As  we  conjecture,  both  this  man's  Avords  and  thine,  O 
Q^iipus,  appear  to  have  been  uttered  in  passion.  But  there  is 
want  not  of  such  words  as  these,  but  to  consider,  but  how  we 
shall  best  expedite  the  oracles  of  the  god. 

TiR.  Even  though  thou  art  a  king,  the  right  of  an  equal 
reply  at  any  rate  must  be  equally  granted  to  both,  for  of  this 
I  too  am  master.  For  in  no  wise  do  I  hold  life  as  servant  to 
thee,  but  to  Loxias,  so  that  I  shall  not  by  and  by  be  entered 
under  Creon  as  jmtron.  But  I  tell  thee,  inasmuch  as  thou 
has  taunted  me  with  being  blind  also  :  thou  actually  hast  thy 
sight,  and  seest  not  in  what  evil  thou  art,  nor  where  thou  art 
dwelliuof,  nor  with  whom  thou  art  consortins*.  Knowest  thou 
now  from  whom  thou  art  ?  Thou  art  even  unaware  that  thou 
art  the  enemy  of  thine  own  buried  kindred,  and  of  those  on 


Electr.  1388.  It  Vv^as  probably  applied  to  the  Sphinx  from  her  rapacity 
and  robberies  See  Pausan.  ix.  26.  Hygin.  Fab.  Ixvii.  or  from  her  par- 
ticipating in  tlio  form  of  a  dog.     Paloephat  de  incred.  hist.  §  7.     B. 

'  On  the  expression  ~u  AajSaneicj  Trattil  (v.  267),  Brunclv  has  a  long 
note  from  Eustathius,  producing  two  examples  from  Homer  of  theso 
adjectives  in  eio^,  in  both  of  which  there  seem  a  certain  solemnity  and 
state  intended  to  be  expressed,  which  indeed  are  more  palpable  in  these 
instances  from  Sophocles :  rw  AaiSduKnv  te  Tzaidi,  Avould  not  have  tho 
sumo  fjrce. 

'■^  Brunck  renders  "  damno  tuo  cognosccres,  quara  male  sentias."  This 
is  not  satisfactory',  the  force  of  tho  particle  ~tii  being  entirely  lost,  unless 
it  be  thought  implied  by  "  sentias."  Since  Oedipus  appears  confident  of 
tho  nature  of  Tiresias'  intentions,  may  we  translate  "thou  hadst  known 
as  the  sufferer  just  what  thou  knowest  as  the  designer,"  and  consider  it 
a  threat  of  banishment ;  or  does  ola  mp  mean  qualia  cunque  ?  Elmsley 
prints  them  together,  olcTrep  ;  Hermann,  separately. 


4n— 441.  CEDIPUS    TYRAXNUS.  l"? 

enrth  above.  And  tbee  with  fearful  steps  shall  a  curse  botli^ 
from  thv  mother  and  thv  father,  one  dav,  with  double  stroke 
chase  from  this  land,  thee  seemg  cow  mdeed  rightly,  but 
then  darkness.  But  with  thine  outcry  what  manner  of 
haven,  what  Cithaeron,  shall  not  speedily  be  in  unison,  when 
thou  slialt  have  become  sensible  of  the  marriage  into  which, 
though  void  of  harborage,  thou  hast  in  thine  halls  steered 
thy  course,  happening  on  a  foir  voyage  time  ?  But  thou  dost 
not  feel  conscious  of  a  multitude  of  other  evils,  which^  shall 
Jovel  thee  with  thy  real  self  and  with  thy  children.  Now 
then  revile  both  Creon  and  my  w^ords,  for  there  lives  not  the 
mortal  who  shall  ever  wear  himself  away  more  direfully  than 
thou. 

CEd.  And  is  all  this  then  bearable  to  hear  from  this  thins:  ? 
Wilt  not  away  to  thy  death  ?  Wilt  not  instantly  ?  Wilt  thou 
not  turn  thy  back  upon  these  halls,  and  get  thee  away  again 
in  haste  ? 

TiR.  Nav,  I  for  my  part  had  not  come,  hadst  thou  not  bid- 
den me  hither. 

Q^B.  I  did,  because  I  was  by  no  means  aware  that  thou 
wouldst  utter  folly,  else  had  I  taken  my  time  at  least  in  fetch- 
ing thee  to  my  dwelling. 

"im.  Such  as  we  are,  we  are,  to  thy  thinking,  fools ;  but  to 
the  parents  who  begat  thee,  wise. 

(Ed.  What  parents  ?  tarry  :  nay,  who  of  mankind  is  my 
parent  ? 

Tin.  This  day  shall  give  thee  thy  birth  and  thy  destruc- 
tion. 

QEd.  How  over-mysterious  and  obscure  dost  thou  speak 
every  thing  ! 

Tin.  Art  not  thou  then  by  nature  the  aptest  at  discovering 
these  ? 

(Ed.  Revile  me,  and  welcome,  in  those  things  in  which  thou 
wilt  find  me  great. 

1  SeivoTTovc. 

"  And  long  upon  my  troubled  ear 
Rang  his  dark  courser's  hoofs  of  fear." — GiAOUR. 
^  There  is  probably  a  play  upon  the  word  lauc,  referring  to  CEdipus 
discovering  both  what  he  himself  was,  and  also  how  he  stood  related  to 
hia  children.     See  "Wunder.     B. 


18  CEDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  442— 4*78. 

TiR.  Yet  is  it  nevertheless  this  very  success  v>'hich  has  been 
thy  ruin/ 

CEd.  Nay,  but  if  I  liave  rescued  this  our  city,  I  care  not. 

TiR,  Now  then  will  I  depart,  and  do  thou,  boy,  conduct 
me. 

(Ed,  Well,  let  him  conduct  thee,  since  while  here  thou 
troublest  and  hinderest  us,  and,  wert  thou  gone,  thou  couldst 
not  annoy  us  more. 

Tin.  I  will  be  gone  when  I  have  spoken  that  for  ^^•hich  I 
came,  not  from  awe  of  thy  presence.^  For  there  is  no  mean 
whereby  thou  shalt  destroy  me.  But  I  tell  thee  :  this  very 
man,  whom  all  this  while  thou  art  searching  out  with  menaces 
and  proclamations  touching  Laius'  murder,  this  man  is  here, 
a  foreign  settler  here  by  report,  but  by  and  by  shall  he  be 
manifested  a  Theban  born,  nor  v.ill  he  be  pleased  with  his 
fortune.  For  blind  instead  of  seeing,  and  a  beggar  instead  of 
rich,  over  a  strange  land  shall  he  be  a  wayforer,  assaying  his 
way  with  a  staff ;  but  with  his  own  children  shall  he  be  de- 
tected abiding,  at  once  their  brother  and  their  sire,  and  of 
the  woman  of  whom  he  was  born  both  son  and  husband,  and 
of  his  father  both  co-rival  and  assassin.  And  these  things, 
going  in-doors,  reason  over  with  thyself;  and  if  thou  detect 
me  to  have  falsified,  say  then  that  I  have  no  skill  in  divina- 
tion. 

Cho?vU3.  Who  is  he  whom  the  prophetic  Delphic  rock 
denounced  as  having  wrought  with  murderous  hands  the  most 
nefarious  of  nefarious  deeds  ?  Time  were  it  for  him  to  em- 
ploy in  flight  a  foot  more  vigorous  than  coursers  swift  as  the 
storm;  for  the  ofispring  of  Jove  all  armed  with  fire  and 
lightnings  is  springing  upon  him,  and  together  are  following 
the  dread  inevitable  fates.  For  a  voice  "hath  glanced  forth, 
but  now  appearing  from  the  snowy  Parnassus,  that  every  one 
must  track  tlie  undiscovered  ci'iminal.  For  under  some'  wild 
wood  is  he  sti'a}'ing,  among  caverns  and  crags,  like  a  bull,' 

*  Compare  "Fatal  !Marriago,"  Act  v.  po.  4: 

"Why,  that  which  damns  most  men  has  ruiuod  mc; 
The  making  of  my  fortune."     B. 
J2  TTormann  imdorstands  by  TrpoauTrou  audacity;  but  as  it  is  used  with 
y6X/j.r]r  in  a  subsequent  passap-o,  the  transhitor  liiis  followed  Brunok. 
^  3  "  Like  a  bull."     See  Virgil's  Goorj>-ic,  iii.  2I9-2:^G.     The  expressions 
u7rovoj<pi^;ui;  nepiTTOTdrai,  etc.,  seem  allusions  to  the  oestrum.     And  the 


479—524.  CEDIPUS    TTRANNUS.  J  9 

Tvith  miserable  foot  a  miserable  widower:  sliimning  the  propli- 
ecies  s})riing  from  earth's  middle:  but  they  flit  around  him, 
ever  liviii^j-.  Fearfully,  however,  fearfully  coes  the  sage  augur 
trouble  me,  neither  assenting  uor  denying;'  nay  I  am  at  a 
loss  what  to  say.  But  I  fluUer  on  hopes,  seeing  neither  in 
prospect  nor  in  retrospect ;  for  what  feud  lay  betw^een  either 
the  Labdacidaa  or  the  son  of  Poly  bus,  I  for  my  part  never 
learned  neither  heretofore,  nor  in  the  present  case  have  I  yet 
irom  any  one^  with  v/hose  test  I,  as  an  avenger  of  the  Labda- 
cida3  in  respect  to  that  mysterious  murder,  should  go  ngainst 
the  popular  fame  of  OEdipus.  Yet  Jupiter  and  Apollo  how- 
ever are  wise,  and  ken  the  aftairs  of  mortals  ;  but  among  men, 
that  a  soothsayer  is  of  more  account  than  I,  is  no  certain 
conclusion ;  yet  a  man  might  surpass  wisdom  by  wisdom  :^ 
Dut  never  would  I  for  my  part,  until  I  sav/  [the  seer's]  words 
prove  true,  agree  with  those  who  condemn  him.  The  Avinged 
maid  came  once  publicly,  and  he  was  then  upon  trial  seen  to 
be  sage,  and  the  city's  friend ;  wdiercforc  in  my  mind  he  shall 
never  be  cast  as  guilty  of  a  crime. 

Creon.  Men  and  citizens,  having  learned  that  (Edipus  the 
Ivino'  accuses  me  in  grievous  terms,  I  come  before  you  ill 
brookino-  it.  For  if  in  these  the  distresses  of  the  present 
time  he  considers  himself  to  have  suffered  aught  at  my  hands, 
at  least  by  word  or  deed  tending  to  his  injury,  truly  I  have 
no  hankerins:  after  a  lono'-endurino;  life  while  I  bear  this 
report.  For  the  penalty  of  this  calumny  upon  me  tends  to 
no  siinple  evil,  but  to  one  of  the  first  magnitude,  if  I  am 
henceforth  to  be  called  a  traitor  in  the  citv,  a  traitor  before 
thee  and  my  friends. 

Ch.  Yet  surely  this  said  reproach  came,  as  it  might  be, 
forced  out  by  rage,  rather  than  by  judgment  of  the  mind. 


epithet  ;\;?;p£ycj7',  which  might  apply  so  well  to  the  bull,  derives  a  tre- 
mendous force  from  the  contrast  of  the  murderer's  actual  condition. 

^  So  above,  89.  ovrs  yap  dpaavr,  Oiir'  ovv  irpoSelaa^  elfil  rw  ye  vvi> 
loy.;).  But  ovTE  SoKovvT^  ovt'  uKoduaicovO^  are  generally  taken,  with 
deivd,  SiS  nominatives  plural,  and  explained,  as  by  the  Scholiast:  nvra 
niaTu  OVTE  a-toTa.  Yet,  as  the  prophet  /^ctc?  affirmed  (Edipus  to  be  the 
murderer,  the  Chorus  could  hardly  say  that  his  words  neither  asserted 
nor  denied,  and  I  therefore  think  the  present  translation  the  best.     B. 

2  Here  there  is  a  lacuna,  which  Brunck  supplies  by  .tP'^cra/iei-'or.     B. 

3  Cf.  v.  380 — Kol  Texvf]  t^x^V^  'XTzepipipovaa.     B. 


20  CEDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  525— 55Y. 

Cr.  But  by  what  did  it  appear  tliat,  piirsuaded  Ly  my 
counsels,  the  prophet  speaks  his  words  falsely  ? 

Cii.  This  was  indeed  averred,  but  I  know  not  with  what 
meaning. 

Cr.  But  was  this  same  accusation  alleged  against  me  with 
eves  and  mind  set  ario^ht  ? 

Ch.  I  know  not,  for  I  have  no  eyes  for  what  my  masters 
do.  But  the  man  himself  is  now  sallying  forth  from  the 
2)alace. 

CEdipus.  IIo,  fellow !  how  earnest  thou  hither  ?  hast  thou 
such  a  front  of  impudence  that  thou  art  come  to  my  very  roof 
being  pal2:>ably  the  assassin  of  this  man,  and  the  confessed 
robber  of  my  royalty  ?  Pray  tell  me,  in  heaven's  name,  what 
cowardice  or  idiocy  having  remarked  in  me  hast  thou  plotted 
to  do  this  ?  Was  it  that  I  should  not  detect  this  work  of 
thine,  creeping  on  me  by  stealth,  and  when  I  had  learned 
should  not  protect  myself  against  it  ?  Why,  is  not  this  thine 
enterprise  a  silly  one,  without  a  multitude  of  friends  to  be 
hunting  after  empire,  which  by  numbers  and  by  wealth  is  to 
be  achieved  ? 

Cr.^  Knowest  thou  what  to  do?  In  answer  to  what  has 
been  said,  listen  to  an  equal  statement,  and  then  be  thyself 
the  arbiter  when  informed. 

GLd.  Thou  art  shrewd  at  speaking,  but  I  am  dull  at  learn- 
ing of  thee ;  for  I  have  found  thee  ill-disposed  and  irksome 
to  me. 

Cr.  This  very  point  now  first  hear  from  me  as  I  shall 
state  it. 

CEd.  This   very  j^oint  now    see   thou  tell  ,me    not,  how   thou 
art  not  a  -sdllain. 

Cr.  Truly,  if  thou  thinkest  willfulness  to  be  any  gain  when 
separate  from  understanding,  thou  thinkest  not  wisely. 

QiD.  Truly,  if  thou  thinkest  that  ill-treatment  a  kinsman 
thou  shalt  not  undergo  the  penalty,  thou  thinkest  not  wisely^. 

Cr.  I  agree  Avith  thee  that  this  is  spoken  with  justice : 
but  inform  mo  of  the  grievance,  what  it  may  be  that  thou 
prr)fessest  to  have  suffered. 

OEd.  Didst  thou  persuade  or  not  pursuade  nie,  that  ir  be- 
hooved me  to  send  some  one  for  the  holy  man  of  ])rophecy? 

Cr.  Ay,  and  am  even  yet  constant  to  my  counsel. 

*  See  Koen  on  Gregoriiis  do  DLiil.  Attic.  §  2.     B. 


55S— 579.  OlDIPUS    TYKANNUS.  21 

(Ed.  Well,    liow    long    lime    may    it    be   now,  then,  since 
Laius — 

Cr.  Did  what  manner  of  deed  ?  for  I  comprehend  not. 

CEd.  Mysteriously  disappeared  by  a  fatal  assault. 

Cr.  Long  and  ancient  periods  might  be  reckoned  up. 

QEd.  Was,  then,  this  same  diviner  at  that  time  in  the 
practice  of  his  calling. 

Cr.  At  least  he  was  as  sage  and  as  much  respected. 

CEd.  Well,  made  he  any  mention  of  me  then  at  that  time  ? 

Cr.  Certainly  not,  never,  at  least,  where  I  was  a  bystander. 

G^D.  But  held  ye  no  inquisition  for  the  deceased  ? 

Cr.  We  commissioned  one  ;  nay,  how  should  we  not  ?  and 
heard  nothing. 

"     CEd.  How  was  it,   then,  that  at  that  time  this  sage  revealed 
not  these  thinorg  ? 

Cr.  I  know  not ;  for  in  matters  on  which  I  have  no  under- 
standing I  prefer  being  silent. 

Gj]d.  Yet  this  much  at  least  thou  knowest,  and  would  state 
if  honest  of  purpose. 

Cr.  Of  what  sort  is  this  thing  ?  for  if  I  do  know  it,  I  will 
not  deny  it. 

(Ed.  It  is,  that  unless  he  had  conspired  with  thee,^  he  never 
could  have  said  that  the  destruction  of  Laius  was  my  doing. 

Cr.  AVhether  he  says  so,  thou  thyself  knowest ;  but  I  claim 
the  right  of  ascertaining  from  thee  just  the  same  things  which 
thou  hast  now  from  me  also. 

CEd.  Ascertain  them ;  for  certainly  I  shall  not  be  detected 
a  murderer. 

Cr.  What  sr.yst  tliou,  then  ?  art  thou  married  to  my  own 
sister  ? 

(Ed.  There  is  no  denial  of  that  thou  questionest. 

Cr.^  And  hast  thou  the  same  sovereignity  with  her,  swaying 
in  equal  share  of  territory  ? 

1  "0^'  ovveKa.']  Thus  in  the  old  English,  the  ballad  of  the  field-mouse: 

"Who  for  because  her  livelihood  was  thin, 
Would  needs  go  seek  her  townisli  sister's  house." 

2  Doederlin  remarks  that  yr/g  ought  rather  to  be  made  to  depend  upon 
upX^i^^  than  upon  laov,  and  he  prefers  interpreting  Icnv  vfjucov,  "  parem 
dignitatem  irihiLens,  soil.  Jocastte,  ut  Phil.  1020:  ov6ev  i^dv  yap  deol 
viLicvol  fioL,  coll.  v.  1062,  Ant.  1371,  nam  de  liberalitate  (Edipi  sermo 
est,  quffi  in  dando  posita  est,  non  de  poteutia  ejusdem,  quae  in  obtinendo 
cernitur."     B. 


22  GEDTPUS    TYR ANNUS.  580—616. 

CEd.  Whatever   be  lier   pleasure,    she   obtains   every  thing 
from  me, 

Cr.  Am  not  I  then  the  third  on  a  par  with  you  too  ? 

(Ed.  Why   'tis   even   in  this  in  fact  thou  showest  thee  a 
folse  friend. 

Cr.  Xot  so,  if  at  least  thou  wouldst  reason  with  thyself, 
as  I  do.  But  retlect  on  this  first,  if  thou  think  that  any 
Vr'ould  choose  for  himself,  to  rule  in  a  state  of  apprehension, 
rather  than  to  sleep  fearless,  if  at  least  he  shall  still  have  tho 
same  powers.  Neither,  then,  am  I  myself  of  a  nature  to 
covet  the  beino:  a  monarch  rather  than  the  actinar  as  a  monarch, 
nor  any  other  who  has  a  sense  of  prudence  ;  for  now  indeed 
I  receiv^e  every  thing  from  thee  without  fear,  but  were  I  king 
myself,  I  should  do  many  things  even  against  my  wishes. 
IIov/  then  is  monarchy  naturally  more  pleasing  to  me  to 
possess,  than  rule  and  puissance  without  pain?  I  do  not  yet 
happen  to  be  so  much  deceived  as  to  wish  for  aught  else 
than  what  is  with  profit  honorable.  Nov/  I  am  friends  with, 
nil,  now  every  one  salutes  me,  now  they  who  liave  a  suit  to 
thee^  summon  me  out ;  for  their  success  is  centered  altogether 
in  me.  How  then  should  I,  having  abandoned  this  place, 
grasp  at  that  other?  A  vrell-intentioned  spirit  could  not 
become  v\'icked.  But  I  am  neither  by  nature  a  warm  admirer 
of  this  same  sentiment,  nor  should  I  CA^r  venture  on  it  with 
another  to  effect  it :  and  as  a  test  of  this,  in  the  first  place, 
go  to  Delphi,  and  inquire  if  I  liavc  fairly  reported  to  thee, 
what  was  prophesied ;  thus  much  more ;  if  thou  detect  me 
to  have  complotted  aught  in  common  with  the  soothsayer, 
take  and  put  me  to  death,  not  by  a  single  suftrage,  but  by 
a  double  one,  both  mine  and  thine  ;  but  hold  mo  not  guilty 
without  a  hearing,  on  an  uncertain  opinion.  For  it  is  not 
just  lightly  to  deem  the  v/icked  good,  or  the  good  wicked. 
For  to  cast  away  a  virtuous  friend,  I  call  as  bad  as  to  cast 
away  one's  own  life,  which  one  loves  best.  But  in  time 
thou  shalt  discern  all  this,  without  fail,  since  time  alono 
develops  the  honest  man  ;  but  a  trjiitor  thou  mightest  discover 
even  in  one  day. 

Ch.  Commendably  liatli  he  spoken  to  one  who  is  caution? 

*  "Wunder  reads  nlicu/J.ovni,  "court  mc,"  from  tlie  conjecture  of  Dind 
Perhaps  tlie  common  reading  may  bo  defended  by  Trach.  120G,  old  ji 

IKKaAel,    TTUTCp. 


en— 641.  CEDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  23 

of  falling,  O  prince  ;  for  they  -svlio  are  liasty  to  judge  are 
insecure. 

Q^D.  When  any  one  takes  quick  steps  in  covert  plots,  it 
needs  ine  to  counteract  him  in  counsel  quickl}" ;  but  if,  keeping 
quiet,  I  wait  for  him,  his  plans  will  be  accomplished,  but 
mind  marred, 

Cr.  Well  then,  what  is  thine  aim  ?  To  eject  mo  from  the 
land  ? 

G^D.  By  no  means  :  I  wish  thee  to  die,  not  to  be  exiled. 

Cr.  V/hen  thou  shalt  fiist  have  shown  the  nature  of  thy 
grudge  to  me. 

Q^D.  Speakest  thou  as  one  v>'ho  will  obev  neither  command 
nor  agreement  V 

Cr.  Yes  ;  for  I  see  thou  art  not  in  thy  rio-lit  mind. 

(Ed.  For  my  own  interest  at  least. 

Cr.  But  thou  oughtest  as  much  for  mine  too. 

(Ed.  But  thou  art  a  born  traitor. 

Cr.  But  what  an  thou  understandest  nothing;  ? 

(Ed.  Yet  still  one  must  be  ruled. 

Cr.  Surely  not  by  a  bad  ruler  at  least. 

(Ed.  O  city,  city  ! 

Cr.  I  too  have  a  part  in  the  city,  and  not  thou  on!r. 

Ch.  Princes,  desist ;  but  opportunely  for  you  both,  I  see 
Jocasta  advancing  from  the  palace,  in  concert  with  whom 
you  are  bound  amicably  to  settle  your  quarrel  now  pending. 

Jocasta.  Why,  infjituate^  have  ye  raised  this  unadvised 
strife  of  tongue,  nor  blush  ye,  v/hen  our  land  is  thus  diseased,  at 
stirring  up  private  mischiefs  ?  Wilt  not  both  thou  get  thee 
home,  and  thou,  Creon,  to  thy  dwelling,  and  not  raise  a 
nothiuo-  of  an  ofFonso  to  map-nitudo  ? 

Cr.  Sister,  (Eclipus,  thy  husband,  thinks  proper  to  do  me 
foul  wrong,  having  limited  choice  to  two  evils,  either  to 
banish  me  from  my  father's  land,  or  to  take  and  slay  mc. 

-  Dr.  Spillan's  version  has,  "  Say  you  that  you  will  not  yield  and  sub- 
mit ?"  The  Cambridge,  "  Do  j-ou  speak  as  not  about  to  depart  nor  to 
obey  me?"  The  old  Oxford,  "Sayest  thou  that  thou  wilt  neither  yield, 
nor  obey?"  ISTone  of  these  interpretations  appear  satisftictory.  I  think 
there  is  some  error  in  niarevauv,  and  poihapc  no  interrogation  is  needed. 
One  would  almost  expect  such  a  sense  as  this-  "  Ynu  T^pcsi?  as  one  that 
can  neither  yield  nor  convince."  Tup  is  cimilarlv  as^^ri  "ii  '»-  ^q'^S'^.p-r  very 
like  the  present  one,  Trach.  1232,  <1)C  epjaoeM^  o'<Si"  uu'  A^r/os  fl-'OEig. 
YAA02,  -/'-■  yap  t:oO\     B. 


24  (EDIPU3    TYR ANNUS.  642—678. 

CEd.  I  confess  it ;  for  I  have  detected  liim,  lady,  in  mal- 
practices against  my  person  with  Avicked  craft. 

Cr.  Now  may  I  never  prosper,  but  perish  accursed,  if  I 
have  done  aught  to  thee  of  what  tliou  accusest  me  of  doing. 

Jo.  Oh !  in  the  gods'  name,  Q^dipus  be  persuaded  to  this : 
most  especially,  indeed,  in  respect  to  this  adjuration  of  the 
gods ;  secondly,  to  both  me  and  these  who  are  here  present. 

Ch.  Be  prevailed  on,  willingly  and  sensibly,  O  king,  I 
im])lore  thee. 

GLd.  What  wilt  thou,  then,  I  shall  concede  to  thee  ? 

Ch.  To  respect  him  who  neither  ere  now  was  imprudent, 
and  now  is  mighty  in  virtue  of  his  oath. 

OEd.  Dost  know  then  what  thou  wishest  ? 

Ch.  I  do  know. 

(Eb.  Explain,  then,  what  thou  hast  so  say. 

Ch.  That  thou  bring  not  into  impeachment  and  disgrace 
thy  friend,  who  has  thus  made  oath,'  at  least  upon  an  un- 
certain charge. 

Q^D.  Know  now  full  well,  that  when  thou  seekest  this, 
thou  art  seekinof  death  or  banishment  from  this  land  for  me. 

Cn.  No,  by  the  god,  chieftain  of  all  the  gods,  the  sun, 
dnco  I  v.'ish  I  may  die  godless,  friendless,  the  direst  of 
all  deaths,  whatever  it  be,  if  I  have  this  design ;  but  the 
withering  land  wears  out  the  spirits  of  hapless  me,  especially 
if  these  troubles,  I  mean  those  which  arise  from  you  two, 
shall  attach  to  the  previous  afflictions. 

CEd.  Then  let  him  be  gone  ;  ay,  if  it  be  my  destiny  utterly 
to  fall  a  victim,  or  be  thrust  out  by  violence,  dishonored 
from  this  country  ;  for  'tis  thy  piteous  appeal,  not  his,  that  I 
compassionate ;  but  he,  wherever  he  shall  be,  shall  be  loathed. 

Ci{.  Full  of  loathing,  indeed,  thou  plainly  showest  thyself 
in  yielding ;  but,  sad  [wilt  thou  be],  when  thou  shalt  have 
exceeded  in  thy  passion.  Such  tempers,  however,  are  justly 
the  most  painful  to  themselves  to  bear  with. 

(Kd.  Wilt  thou  not  leave  me  alone,  and  get  thee  forth  ? 

Cr.  I  will  be  gone,  having  met  with  you  indeed  who  know 
me  not ;  but  in  the  eyes  of  these  men  just. 

Ch.  Lady,  why  delayest  thou  to  convey  this  man  within 
the  house  ? 

^  This  is  Erfurdt's  interpretatiou  of  iiny?/.  Liddcll  well  renders  it, 
"  who  has  pledged  himself  under  a  curse."     Sec  Lexicon,  sub  v.     B. 


673—706.  OEDIPUS    TYRAXNUS.  25 

Jo.  I  will,  when  I  have  learned  at  least  what  may  have 
happened. 

Ch.  An  uncertain  suspicion  came  of  certain  words :  even 
the  unjust  taunt  is  cutting. 

Jo.  From  both  of  them  ? 

Ch.  Even  so. 

Jo.  And  what  was  the  saying  ? 

Ch.  Enough,  enough  to  me  at  least  it  seems,  when  the 
land  is  previously  distressed,  that  it  rest  there  where  it  left 
off. 

(Ed.  Seest  thou  to  what  thou,  a  man  of  upright  intention, 
art  come,'  giving  up  my  side,  and  hardening  your  heart 
ao:ainst  me  I 

Ch.  O  prince,  I  have  said  not  once  alone,  but  know  that 
I  should  show  myself  beside  my  senses,  incapacitated  from 
reofainino-  those  senses,  where  I  to  secede  from  thee,  who  hast 
piloted  right  steadily  down  the  stream  mme  own  dear  land, 
when  rocking  about  in  troubles ;  and  now  too,^  be  safe  con- 
voy to  it,  if  thou  mayest- 

Jo.  In  the  gods'  name  inform  me  also,  O  king,  from  what 
circumstances  on  earth  thou  hast  conceived  so  great  wrath 
as  this. 

(Ed.  I  will  tell  thee ;  for  I  hold  thee,  lady,  in  more  re- 
spect than  these :  it  is  from  Creon ;  that  he  has  plotted  such 
devices  ao^ainst  me, 

Jo.  Speak,  if  thou  wilt  plainly  state  the  cause  of  quarrel, 
charging  it  on  hi  mi"  "  ^     "^  -^  — , 

(Ed.  He  says  that  I  am  the  murderer  of  LaiuF^ 

Jo.  Of  his  own  privity,  or  having  learned  it  from  other  ? 

(Ed.  Why,  by  having  sent  me  a  knavish  soothsayer, 
however ;  for  as  to  himself,  at  least,  he  exculpates  his  speech 
entirely.^ 

1  So  F.  Jacobs :  irapulg  is,  to  the  best  of  ray  knowledge,  always  used 
of  what  one  does  of  or  to  ones^  self^  not  of  what  one  causes  another  to  do. 
(See  EllendL)  The  same  remark  applies  to  vcpelg.  The  old  translation 
was,  "by  lowering  and  deadening  my  spirit"     B. 

'  C£  V.  52*  sq.     B.     ylvov  is  condemn-ed  by  Hermann  as  spurious. 

^  i.  e.,  from  having  accused  me.  It  appears  strange  that  so  many  com- 
mentators should  have  missed  the  true  sense  of  a  passage  so  strongly 
marked  by  the  particles  fiiv  ovv,  and  the  ye  in  the  next  clause.  (Edipua 
is  positive  (ovv)  of  Tiresias  being  merely  Creon's  mouth-piece,  though 
Creon  himself  had  vindicated  his  own  language.    See  Hermann'a  and 

B 


26  (EDIPU3    TYRANNUS.  707—739. 

Jo.  Do  thou  now,  leaving  thine  own  matter  alone,  as 
touchino-  the  thino;s  thou  sucahest  of,  o-ive  ear  to  me,  and 
learn  for  thy  comfort,  that  there  is  no  mortal  thing  possessed 
of  the  prophetic  art.  But  I  will  develop  to  thee  concise 
evidence  of  this.  For  lono-  aij^o  came  an  oracle  to  Laius,  I  will 
not  assert  from  Phoebus  himself,  however,  but  fi'om  his  min- 
isters, that  his  doom  should  come  for  him  to  fall  by  a  sou  who 
should  be  begotten  of  me  and  him.  And  him,  indeed,  at 
least  as  the  story  goes,  do  foreign  robbers  murder  on  a  time, 
at  the  junction  of  three  carriage-ways.  But  from  the  birth 
of  the  child  there  intervened  not  three  days  before  he,  having 
tied  the  joints  of  its  feet  together,  cast  it  away  by  others' 
hands,  upon  an  untrodden  mountain.  And  therein  Apollo 
brought  to  pass  neither  that  it  should  be  the  slayer  of  its 
fiither,  nor  that  Laius,  the  disaster  ^vhich  he  then  dreaded, 
should  die  by  his  son's  hand.  Such  fates  did  the  prophetic 
declarations  predetermine,  of  which  take  thou  no  heed.  For 
whatever  the  god  investigates  as  necessary,  uill  he  in  person 
easily  make  appear. 

GLd.  AVhat  distraction  of  soul  and  perturbation  of  feelings 
at  this  moment  possesses  me,  liaving  heard  thee,  lady. 

Jo.  By  what  manner  of  solicitude  altered  in  mind  sayest 
thou  this  ? 

(Ed.  I  thought  I  heard  this  from  thee,  that  Laius  vras 
slaughtered  near  three  highways. 

Jo.  Yes;  for  these  things  were  rumored,  nor  have  they 
yet  ceased  to  be. 

CEd.  And  where  is  this  said  spot  where  this  catastrophe 
occurred  ? 

Jo«  .Fh2d.S-.the  land  is  called  :  but  a  separate  road  leads  to 
the  same  point  from  Delphi  and  from  Daulia. 

CEd.  And  wdiat  is  the  time  that  has  elapsed  to  these 
events  ? 

Jo.  Some  short  time  previous  to  thy  coming  forward  as 
ruler  of  this  land,  w^ere  these  rumors  published  to  the  city. 

(Ed.  O  Jupiter,  what  hast  thou  purposed  to  do  by  me  ? 

Jo.  But  what,  O  Oedipus,  is  this  monster  of  thy  thought  ? 


Erfurdt's  notes.  Tr. — !Nfore  simply,  "  he  keeps  hia  speech  free  from 
nuch  assertion."  In  Liddcll's  Lexicon  it  is  rendered,  "  every  man's  tongue 
is  ready  to  acquit  himself."     B. 


>?40— VGl.  CEDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  27 

ffiD.  Question  me  not  3-et.*  But  of  Laius  tell  me  what 
personal  aj^pearance  he  had,  and  that "  at  what  era  of  his 
prime. 

Jo.  Of  lofty  port,  just  now  whitening  to  down  the  hoary 
honors  of  his  head :  but  he  was  not  very  unhke  thy  own 
form.^ 

CEd.  AYog  me  unhappy !  It  seems  I  have,  without  know- 
ing it,  even  now  forced  myself  prematurely  into  horrid  curses. 

Jo.  How  sayest  thou  ?  veiily  I  shudder  as  I  glance  at  thee, 
O  kinof, 

CEd.  Fearfully  am  I  despondent,  lest  the  prophet  see  too 
well  :  but  thou  wilt  the  surer  demonstrate  it  if  thou  wilt  be 
explicit  on  one  more  point. 

Jo.  Indeed,  indeed  [  shrink  from  it ;  yet  w^hat  thou  shalt 
ask,  if  aw^are,  I  will  tell. 

(Ed.  AYas  he  journeying  thinly  attended,  or  with  a  train 
of  many  arined_  cgtainers,  as  one  of  a  chieftain's  rank  should  ? 

Jo.  They  were  five  altogether ;  and  among  them  was  a 
herald  :  but  a  single  chariot  conveyed  Laius.  /  \ 

CEd.  Alas !  all  this  is  now  full  clear.  AVho  on  earth  was 
he  who  tald  this  same  narrative  to  you,  lady  ? 

Jo.  A  certain  domestic,  who  in  fact  v\'as  the  only  one  who 
returned  safely  escaped. 

CEd.  And  does  he  happen  to  be  now  at  hand  in  the 
palace  ? 

Jo.  O  no !  for  from  the  time  when  he  returned  thencs 
and  saw  both  thee  holding  the  government,  and  Laius  dead, 
he  petitioned  me,  grasping  my  hand,  to  send  him  into   the 


'  "Not  jct,"  Porson  says,  ad  Hec.  12G0  (ed.  Pors.),  that  /it/ttu  ig 
used  for  ^i/Trore,  which  Erfurdt  quotes  on  this  place,  aithougli  totally 
inapplicable,  and  quotes  moreo^^er  v>nthout  the  most  essential  part,  the 
"  7.LTi,7i]<;  quajdam"  of  /zz/ttw  for  [lyTcoTe ;  v\'hicli  omission  might  lead 
one  to  suppose  that  Porson  thought  the  two  words  equivalent,  and  the 
particle  ttcj  to  have  two  senses. 

2  "And  that."  Erfurdt's  note  on  this  place  is  truly  admirable,  when 
contrasted  with  the  opinions  of  those  learned  men  who,  b}^  dubbing  those 
v/ords  noil's  faineants  which  they  can  not  express,  would  conceal  their 
own  laziness  or  the  poverty  of  modern  languages.  '"Participia  t'A'wv, 
/MpcJr,  et  alia  nunquam  sic  ponuntur,  ut  nihil  plane  significentj  sem- 
perque  imaginibus  rerum  ad  summam  illam,  cui  Gracorum  nobilissima 
gens  per  omnia  studebat,  perfectionera  exprimendis  inserviunt." 

»  See  Schlegel's  Yllth  Lecture,  p.  102.     B. 


28  CEDIPUS    TYR ANNUS.  701—192. 

country  and  to  the  pastures  of  tlie  flocks,  that  he  might  be 
most  completely  removed  from  sight  of  this  city.  And  I  sent 
him :  for  he  was  worthy,  considering  he  was  a  slave,  to 
obtain  even  a  higher  fovor  than  this. 

CEd.  Would  then  that  he  might  return  to  us  speedily  ! 

Jo.  It  is  possible  :  but  wherefore  seekest  thou  this  ? 

GLd.  For  myself  I  fear,  lady,  lest  overmuch  have  been 
said  by  me,  for  which  cause  I  wish  to  see  him. 

Jo.  Nay,  he  shall  come.  But  surely  I  also  am  worthy  to 
learn,  at  least,  vfhat  circumstances  are  irksome  to  thee,  O 
kin  Of. 

OEd.  And  thou  surely  must  by  no  means  be  disappointed 
of  this,  when  I  have  now  arrived  at  such  a  pitch  of  expect- 
ancy.^ For  to  whom  could  I  speak  who  would  be  of  more 
account  even  then  thou,  when  implicated  in  such  a  fate  as 
this  ?  I  had  for  my  father  Polybus_of  Corinth,  for  my  rQothg^ 
Merope  of  Doils  :  and  T  was  esteemed  chiefest  in  rank  of  the 
citizens  of  Corinth,  before  an  accident  befell  me  such  as  I 
shall  tell,  worthy  indeed  of  wonder,  but  unworthy  never- 
theless of  the  interest  I  took  in  it.  For  at  a  banquet  a  man 
overcharged  with  wine,  brands  me  over  his  cups  with  being 
a  supposititious  son  of  my  father.  And  I,  deeply  displeased, 
with  much  ado  restrained  me  for  that  day  ;  but  on  the  next 
I  visited  my  mother  and  my  father,  and  strictly  questioned 
them ;  but  they  were  highly  olfended  for  the  affront  with 
him  who  gave  vent  to  the  assertion.  And  I  was  pleased 
indeed  with  them :  but  yet  this  [innuendo]  was  al\va3's 
galling  me,  for  it  had  sunk  deep  in  my  mind.  So  unknown 
to  my  mother  and  father  I  go  on  a  journey  to  Delphi.  And 
Phoebus,  as  to  the  matters  for  wliicli  I  came,  sent  nie  away 
without  the  lionor  of  an  jinswer ;  but  other  fortunes,  wretched, 
and  horrible,  and  deplorable,  he  was  but  too  ready  to  tell  ;'■" 
that  it  was  my  doom  to  commit  incest  with  my  mother,  and 
that    I  should  bring  to  light  a  progeny  mankind  should  not 

1  Erfiirdt,  referring  to  v.  829,  thinks  D.ttIc  correctly  translated  hy  Jwpe 
here.  The  other  seems  the  most  natural  sequel  to  Qildipus'  words  im- 
mediately preceding. 

■^  npov(pavr]  /Jyur.  Apcrte  prcBdixit,  Brunck.  But  both  the  sense 
of  the  passage  and  the  force  of  -tju^arrjre  in  the  first  chorus  are  in  favor 
of  liie  otlior  rendering  Til. — Wunder  reads  Tzpoxxprjvev,  ?.tyujv.  Seo  his 
aoLe.     B. 


•793—811,  (EDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  29 

endure  to  behold,  and  that  I  slioiild  be  tlie  murderer  of  tba 
father  who  begot  me.  And  I  on  hearing  this,  from  that  time 
forth  measuring  ^  out  the  site  of  the  land  of  Corinth  by  the 
stars,  began  my  flight  from  it  to  where  I  might  never  witness 
the  scandals  of  those  evil  prophecies  about  me  accomplished. 
,J3ut  in  my  travel  I  reach  those  very  spots  on  which  thou 
,j;ayest  that  this  same  monarch  met  his  death.  And  to  thee, 
lady,  will  I  di\TiIge  the  truth  :  when  I  wending  on  my  way  ^ 
Avas  close  upon  this  triple  road,  there  did  both  a  herald,  and 
a  man  mounted  on  a  chariot  with  young  steeds,  even  as  thou 
describest,  meet  me  ;  and  both  the  guide  and  the  old  man 
himself  were  for  driving  me  by  force  otF  the  road.  So  I  in 
passion  strike  him  who  was  turning  me  off,  the  charioteer. 
And  the  old  man  when  he  sees  this,  having  watched  my 
passing  by,  struck  me  from  the  car  with  a  doubled  goad  a 
descending  blow  on  the  middle  of  the  head.  Ay,  and  he  paid 
a  penalty  not  equivalent,  I  trow,  but  hastily  struck  by  a  staff 


'  But  see  Heath.     B. 

■^  This  is  the  first  of  four  passages  which  Hermann  in  his  preface  to 
Erfardt's  edition  has  specially  noticed.  Elmsley  in  his  preface  has  these 
words.  "  'H  pro  r/v,  ermn,  quater  reposui.  'Hv  aliquoties  ante  vocalera 
legitur  apud  Euripidem,  ut  in  Hippol.  1012;  Ale.  658;  Iph.  Aul.  944; 
Ion.  280.  Quamquam  htec  omnia  corrupta  esse  suspicor.  Sic  etiam  te^ 
Aristophanes,  sed  in  Pluto,  novissima  omnium  fabula,  v.  1:9,  695,  823. 
Nihil  tale  apud  Sophoclem  reperitur.  Yid.  (Ed.  Tvr.  801,  1123,  1389, 
1303;  (Ed.  Col.  768,  973,  1366;  Trach.  87,  414;  Aj"  1377;  Phil.  1219; 
El.  1023."  From  this  remark  of  our  critic,  Hermann  has  taken  occasion 
to  dilate  at  some  length  on  the  propriety  of  limitmg  the  alteration  pro- 
posed, and  brings  forward  the  following  points  for  consideration :  1st. 
That  if  the  tragic  writers  never,  and  Aristophanes  only  in  his  latest  writ- 
ten play,  used  ?/v,  it  is  strange  that  Plato,  many  of  whose  writings  are 
subsequent  to  the  Plutus,  should  have  adhered  to  the  obsolete  form.  That 
to  t'ao  above  lines  of  Euripides  no  otlier  suspicion  of  a  corrupt  text  can 
attach  than  the  identical  //  in  question ;  and  that  therefore  it  were  safer 
to  have  determined  that  tragic  and  comic  writers  used  yv,  in  order  to 
avoid  the  hiatus  before  a  vowel.  2d.  That  if  la  or  7/a  and  hv  be  found 
in  Homer  as  imperfects  of  eljui,  the  old  grammarians  considered  ?'7}v  no 
loss  so  (II.  o,  80) :  that  the  ta  of  Herodotus,  the  imperfect,  seems  differ- 
ent from  Homer's  ta,  which  in  one  instance  (Od.  s  351),  must  be  taken 
as  an  aorist,  and  may  in  all  he  has  cited.  3d.  That  the  Attics  may,  as 
in  other  cases  of  a  double  imperfect,  have  taken  r/,  though  formed  from 
t'le  undoubted  imperfect  ta,  as  an  aorist.  For  the  examples  adduced  in 
support  of  this  opinion,  see  Hermann's  preface.  In  this  passage  he  re* 
tains  iji>,  admitting  cither  to  be  correct. 


30  CEDIPUS    TYRANNUS.-  811—848. 

from  this  Land,  lie  is  instantiy  rolled  out  of  tlio  chariot  pros- 
trate, and  I  slay  the  whole  of  them.  But  if  Lnius  and  this 
panic  stranger  have  any  near  connection,'  who  is  a  more  pit- 
iable ohJGct  than  I,  even  I  ?  What  man  could  there  be  more 
abhorred  of  the  gods  ?  to  whom  it  is  permitted  that  none  of 
ctrangers  or  natives  should  admit  him  within  their  dwelhngs ; 
that  none  should  even  accost  him,  but  thrust  him  from  their 
dwellings :  and  this  it  was  no  other  than  I,  that  fastened  on 
myself  even  these  curses.  Nay  the  couch  of  him  who  is 
deceased  do  I  pollute  by  my  hands,  those  hands  by  which  he 
fell.  Am  I  not  by  nature  a  villain  ?  am  I  not  totally  impure  ? 
if   I  must  needs  flee  the  country,  and  havinnr  fled  am  to  be 

ti    1  CD 

permitted  neither  to  behold  my  own,  nor  to  set  foot  on  my 
native  soil ;  or  I  am  doomed  to  be  yoked  in  v»-edlock  with  my 
mother,"  and  to  kill  outright  my  father  Polybus,  who  reared, 
who  begot  me.  And  would  not  any  one,  pronouncing  all 
this  to  be  the  work  of  a  ruthless  daemon  upon  me,  be  right 
in  his  words  ?  Then  O  may  I  never,  may  I  never,  thou  spot- 
less majesty  of  heaven,  see  this  day,  but  may  I  be  gone  from 
amono;  mankind  into  darkness  ere  that  I  viev?  such  a  taint  of 
misery  come  upon  me. 

Ch.  To  us,  O  king,  these  tidings  are  alarming :  until  how- 
ever thou  hast  ascertained  fully  from  the  eyewitness,  have  hope. 

Q3d.  Yes,  certainly,  so  much  hope  at  least  I  have,  as 
merely  to  abide  the  coming  of  the  man,  the  herdsman. 

Jo.  But  when  he  has  made  his  appearance,  what  re- 
assurance canst  thou  have  ? 

CEd.  I  v.-ill  inform  thee.  For  should  he  be  found  to  be 
in  tlie  same  story  with  thee,  I  for  my  part  may  have  escaped 
the  woe. 

Jo.  But  v.hat  word  heardst  thou  from  me,  so  particularly 
remarkable  ? 

Q^D.  Thou  toldst  that  he  spake  of  certain  robbers,  that 
they  slew  the  king :  if  tlierefore  he  shall  report  the  same 
number  still,  I  was  not  his  slayer,  for  one  at  least  could  not 
be  the  same  with  many.  But  if  he  shall  mention  one  man 
journeying  alone,  this  veiy  deed  thereupon  plainly  falls  upon  me. 

Jo.  Nay,    be   assured   that   the   tale   was   so  published   at 


1  This  verse  is  condemned  hy  L.  Dindorf  and  Wundcr,     B. 
-  Wundcr'a  objections  to  this  verso  saems  reasonable.     B. 


849—890.  (EDIPUS    TYR ANNUS.  31 

least,  and  lie  can  not  aj^ain  nullify  this  at  any  rate ;  for  tlie 
whole  city,  and  not  I  only,  heard  these  tidings.  But  if,  after 
all,  he  should  in  any  point  deviate  from  his  former  account, 
never,  O  prince,  shall  he  show  that  Laius'  murder  at  least  \ 
was  duly  consistent,  whom  I  ween  Loxias  declared  must  | 
perish  by  a  son  of  mine.'  And  yet  he,  (Ke  ill-starred  babe, 
never  slew  him,  but  himself  perished  long  before.  So  that  I 
never  ao-ain  for  the  sake  of  divination  at  least  would  turn 
mine  eyes  either  this  way  or  that. 

Q^D.  Well  dost  thou  determine ;  but  yet  send  one  to  con- 
vey hither  the  hind,  nor  neglect  this. 

Jo,  I  will  hasten  to  dispatch  one ;  but  let  us  go  in  doors ; 
for  I  would  do  naught  which  might  bo  displeasing  to  thee. 

Chorus.  O  may  it  be  my  lot  to  support  the  all-sainted 
purity  of  every  vv'ord  and  action,  regarding  which  are  pro- 
pounded laws  of  state  sublime,  engendered  within  the  fir- 
mament of  heaven,  whose  only  father  is  Olympus ;  nor  did 
the  perishable  nature  of  man  give  them  being,  no,  nor  shall 
oblivion  even  drown  them  in  sleep.  Great  is  the  divinity  in 
these,  nor  groweth  old.  Insolence  engenders  the  tyrant, 
Insolence,  if  idly  she  have  been  over-glutted  with  much  that 
is  neither  seasonable  nor  serviceable,  having  surmounted  the'^ 
topmost  precipice,  dashes  onward  into  ruin,  where  she  useth 
her  feet  in  vain.  But  the  rival  energy  that  profits  the  state  I 
implore  the  deity  never  to  unnerve  ;  whom  never  v/ill  I  cease 
to  take  for  my  patron.  But  if  any  w^alk  presumptuously  in 
deed  or  word,  unawed  of  justice  nor  reverencing  the  seats  of 
the  powers  above,  m,ay  evil  doom  overtake  him  in  reward  of 
his  fatal  wantonness ;  until  he  shall  gain  his  gains  honestly, 
and  refrain  himself  from  all  unhallowed  things,  or  if  he,  vain 
fool,  shall  grasp  at  v/hat  is  sacred  from  the  touch.^     In  this 

1  This  passage  is  not  clear.  Biithe  and  Wunder  read,  guv  ye  for  r6u 
ye,  "  nondum  tamen  a  te  Laium  interfectum  esse  omnino  probat."     B. 

2  But  uKporarov  and  uTvorounv  can  not  be  joined,  and  there  is  equal 
difficulty  in  the  metrical  disagreement  between  this  and  the  strophic 
verse.  Dindorf  supposes  some  substantive  lost,  which  Wunder  thinks 
may  have  given  place  to  one  of  the  adjectives.  I  do  not,  however,  seo 
why  ho  should  object  to  joining  d~uTounv  with  uvayKav.  for  aTztnoiw; 
may  bo  taken  both  in  its  ordinary  sense  of  "  abruptus"  (Cf.  Herodot,  1, 
84:)^  and  for  "harsh,  rough,"  as  \wq  find  in  Eurip.  Alcest.  931,  ov6s  tlq 
uKornunv  /.fjuarog  earti'  alScJc.     B. 

^  The  di3icalty  in  this  passage  arises  from  the  separation  of  the  two 


32  CEDIPUS    TYRANXUS.  891—91]. 

state  of  tilings,  what  man  will  ever  gain  glory'  in  repulsing 
from  Lis  soul  the  darts  of  passion  ?  for  if  practices  sucli  as 
these  be  had  in  honor,  why  need  I  lead  the  chorus  ?  Never 
again  will  I  make  pilgrimage  to  the  hallowed  center  of  earth 
as  worshiper,  nor  to  the  shrine  at  Abae,  nor  to  the  Olympian, 
unless^  these  matters  shall  turn  out  congruous,  so  as  to  bfe 
pointed  at  by  the  finger  of  all  mankind.  But,  0  sovereign 
Jove^  if  indeed  thou  art  riglitly  styled  ruler  of  the  universe, 
be  it  not  unregarded  by  thee  and  thine  ever-undjring  empire. 
For  already  they  are  overthrowing  the  prophecies  delivered 
to  Laius,  which  fall  into  decay,  and  nowhere  is  Apollo  con- 
spicuous in  w^orship,  but  all  that  is  diWnc  is  going  to  ruin. 
Jo.^  Pnnces  of  the  land,  the  design  has  suggested  itself  to 

clauses,  ei'  tic.  .Tropherat  and  y  ruv  dd  .  e^  .  fiard^^uv,  by  the  intermedi' 
ate  words.  With  tp^ETai  we  must  understand  fif),  and  connect  it  closely 
with  the  preceding  words.     B. 

^  This  translation  follows  Hermann's  correction  ev^erai.  .Ovfiov. . 
djuvpeiv  ;  but  Hermann  has  himself  changed  his  mind,  and  would  throw 
out  tp^erai  altogether,  in  which  he  is  followed  by  "Wunder  in  his  third 
edition,  ip^erat  can  not  be  construed.  Hermann's  third  opinion  is  that 
we  should  read  tic  £Ti  ttot'  eu  toIg6^  dvfjp,  Otdv  dt/.y  rr^^'C  djuvveiv. 
Brunck  reads  e^ei,  Elmsley  dp^eTai.  As  this  variation  of  ophiions  will 
sufficiently  puzzle  the  reader,  I  will  merely  observe  that  Brunck's  reading 
appears  easiest,  and  that  Hermann's  last  opinion,  as  in  many  other  in- 
stances, is  his  worst.  Dindorf  leaves  the  text  unintelligible.  6vfiC>  must 
not  be  altered,  for  it  is  against  passion  that  the  whole  advice  of  the 
Chorus  is  directed.  And  if  altered,  what  are  at  -otaide  npd^eic  ?  The 
sense  ought  doubtless  to  be  that  expressed  by  the  translator,  or  some- 
thing near  it,  and  the  chief  difficulty  appears  to  rest  in  the  verb  to  be 
employed.  With  this  chorus  compare  the  one  in  the  4th  act  of  Seneca's 
(Edipus.    B. 

2  The  construction  seems  rather  to  be  el  /ly  Tuth  upjioceL  ttuoiv  iSporolg, 
tJGTe  x^ipof^^ciiTa  dvai,  "  unless  these  things  shall  turn  out  to  the  satisfac- 
tion of  all  mortals,  so  that  they  may  point  to  them  with  the  finger."     B. 

3  Jocasta  here,  contrasted  with  the  Jocasta  of  the  following  scenes,  * 
seems  an  instance  of  that  ouaAdc  di'cjfj.n?.oc  of  Aristotle,  which  Bossu  so 
well  illustrated  by  the  regular  irregularities  of  "th' inconstant  moon." 
That  Jocasta  is  di>u/za/io^  in  the  play  is  evident ;  but  is  she  so  6/j.a?Mc  ? 

■""^he  motlior  who  in  three  days  from  the  birth  of  her  first-born  could 
abandon  him  to  his  fate  without  an  effort  to  save  him  ;  the  queen-consort 
who  could  so  soon  forget  the  husband  of  her  youth  that  in  such  time  as 
it  took  to  finish  a  journey  from  Delplii  to  Thebes,  hear  and  solve  a  riddle, 
she  could  wed  an  utter  stranger;  such  a  woman  might  assuredh',  without 
violation  of  historic  truth,  be  represented  as  changing  with  the  breath  o/ 
every  rumor.  If  any  thing  were  wanting  to  make  the  character  moro 
natural,  it  is  supplied  in  her  clear-sightedness  with  regard  to  her  husbandj 


912—941,  CEDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  33 

me  of  repairing  a  suppliant  to  tlie  temples  of  the  gods,  having 
taken  in  my  hands  these  chaplets  and  incense-ofl'erino-s.  For 
Oedipus  raises  his  feelings  to  too  high  excitement  by  griefs 
of  every  variety,  nor,  as  should  a  man  of  understanding, 
conjectures  what  is  new  by  what  is  old ;  but  is  the  speaker's 
dupe,  if  he  but  speak  of  horrors.  Since  then  by  advising  I 
make  none  the  more  progress,  to  thee,  O  Lycasan  Apollo/ 
seeing  thou  art  nearest  at  hand,  am  I  come  ~a  petitioner  with 
these  rites  of  prayer,  that  thou  mayest  furnish  us  with  some 
holy  remedy,  since  now  we  are  all  quailing  to  see  him,  as 
pilot  of  the  vessel,  horror-stricken. 

Messenger.  Could  I  learn  from  you,  stranijers,  where  is  the 
abode  of  the  monarch  (Edipus?  but  chiefly  of  himself,  tell 
me  if  ye  know  where  he  is. 

Ch.  This  is  his  mansion,  and  himself  is  within,  stranger ; 
but  this  lady  is  the  mother  of  his  children. 

Mes.  But  may  she  be  prosperous  herself,  and  ever  con- 
sort with  the  prosperous,^  for  that  she  is  his  true  and  proper 
wife. 

Jo.  Xay,  and  thou  also  the  same,  O  stranger,  since  thou 
deservest  it  for  thy  courteous  accost :  but  make  known  in 
quest  of  what  thou  hast  come,  and  what  desirous  to  impart. 

Mes.  Good  to  thy  house  and  husband,  lady. 

Jo.  Of  what  nature  this  same  good?  and  from  whence 
arrived  ? 

Mes.  From  Corinth ;  but  at  the  tale  which  I  shall  divulge 
thou  mightst  perhaps  be  gi'atified ;  nay,  how  shouldst  thou 
not  ?  yet  haply  mightst  thou  be  sorry. 

Jo.  But   what   is   it?  v.'hat    sort   cf  twofold  force   does  it 

,1  n  «MP— r  ■   rill      li     ". 

thus  possess  i 

Mes.  The  inhabitants  of  the  Isthmian  land  will  set  him 
up  for  their  king,  as  was  there  reported. 

Jo.  But  what  ?  is  not  the  aged  Poly  bus  still  on  the  throne  ? 

who,  she  says,  eutl  tov  Tih/ovroq,  quite  unconscious  of  this  being  her 
own  chief  weakness. 

^  Probablv  having  an  altar  on  the  stage,  in  front  of  the  palace.  See 
the  Schol.     B. 

2  Here  seems  to  be  a  masterly  allusion  to  the  real  state  of  things.  The 
very  messenger,  whose  intelligence  leads  to  the  fatal  discovery,  lays  em- 
phatic stress  upon  the  married  felicity  of  JocastaJ  Musgrave  has  made 
a  similar  remark  respecting  the  words,  >  vv?)  (51  n-qrrjp.     B. 

2* 


34  (EDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  942—970. 

Mes.  No  truly,  since  deatli  prisons  liim  in  the  grave. 

Jo.  How  hast  thou  said  ?  is  Polybus  deceased,  old  man  ? 

Mes.  If  I  speak  not  the  truth,  I  confess  me  worthy  of 
death. 

Jo.  IIo,  handmaiden,  wilt  thou  not  he  p^one  and  tell  this 
with  all  speed  to  thy  lord  ?  Predictions  of  the  gods,  where 
are  ye  ?  This  very  man  CEilipus,  long  ago  in  alarm  lest  he 
should  murder,  went  into  banishment,  and  now,  hehold  !  he 
has  perished  by  course  of  nature,  not  by  my  husband. 

(Edipus.  O  dearest  head  of  my  wife  Jocasta,  wherefore  hast 
thou  sent  for  mc  hither  out  of  the  palace  here  ? 

Jo.  Listen  to  this  man,  and  as  thou  hearest,  mark  to  what 
are  come  the  solemn  predictions  of  the  god. 

(Ed.  But  who  can  this  man  be,  and  what  has  he  to  tell 
me? 

Jo.  From  Corinth,  to  bring  thee  news  that  thy  father  Polybus 
is  no  more,  but  is  dead. 

QEd.  What  sayest  thou,  stranger  ?  Do  thou  thyself  become 
my  informant. 

Mer.  If  I  must  first  deliver  me  of  this  fact  clearly,  be 
assured  that  he  is  dead  and  Q-one.^ 

(Ed.  By  treachery,  or  the  encounter  of  desease  ?  * 

Mes.  a  triflino;  bend  of  the  scale  sends  ao-ed  frames  to  rest. 

(Ed.  By  sickness,  it  seems,  the  poor  sufferer  wasted  away. 

Mes.  And^  commensurcitely,  I  ween,  with  a  long  time 
of  life. 

(Ed.  Alas  !  alas !  when  then,  my  queen,  should  any  one 
regard  the  prophetic  he.-ii-tli  of  Pytho,  or  the  birds  that  scream 
above  our  heads,  under  Avhose  predestination  I  was  fated  to 
slay  my  own  father  ?  But  he  is  dead  and  buried  deep  dowji 
in  earth,  while  I  here  before  you  am  guiltless  of  handling 
weapon  against  him,  unless  in  any  degree  he  pined  away  from 
regret  of  me,*  but  so  he  might  have  died  by  my  means.      The 


'  Not  with  6S6v  understood  after  Oavdai/iov,  but  the  latter  agreeicg 
with  fSejirjKura,  according  to  Erfurdt. 

^  Ssneca  (Edip.  act  iv.  sc.  2,  4,  "  Edisscro  ogcduni,  quo  cadat  fato 
parens.     Sexex.     Animam  senilem  mollis  exsolvit  sopor."     B. 

^  ^vjUfierpov/iiEvng  must  be  taken  with  lolhro  understood,  as  if  it  were 
the  adverb  ^vu/iETf)ovfitvu)r.     Tliis  is  much  tlie  most  simple  way.     B. 

*  Perhaps  for  ovru  iV  we  should  read  ovru  y\  "ita  saltern,"  "So,  for- 
sooth, lie  might  have  died  by  my  means."     B. 


971—993  (EDIPU3    TYR ANNUS.  35 

present  oracles  tlieii  Folybus  lias  swept  off  with  liim  utterly 
Avorthless,  and  lies  in  Hades.  1 

Jo.  Did  I  not  now  forewarn  lliee  of  this  Ions:  a2:o  ?  ' 

(Ed.  Thou  didst  say  it ;  but  I  was  led  away  by  my  fear. 

Jo.  See  thou  no  longer  give  one  of  them  place  in  thy  mind 
now. 

CEd.  And  how  must  I  not  shrink  from  a  mother's  bed? 

Jo.'  But  why  should  man  fear,  whom  the  decrees  of  chance 
control,  while  there  is  no  certain  foresight  of  aught  ?  'T  were 
best  to  hve  at  random,  e'en  as  one  could.  But  have  thou  no 
fear  of  the  bridal  alliance  with  thy  mother ;  for  many  among 
mankind  have  ere  now,  and  that  in  dreams,  done  incest  with 
a  mother ;  but  to  whomsoever  this  reckons  as  nothing,  he 
bears  his  life  the  easiest. 

(Ed.  Fairly  had  all  this  been  stated  by  thee,  had  my 
mother  happened  not  to  have  been  alive  ;  but  now,  since  she 
does  live,  there  is  positive  necessity,  even  though  thou  sayest 
fairlv,  for  me  to  recoil. 

Jo.  And  yet  the  burial  of  thy  father  at  least  throws  a  great 
lisrht  on  this. 

(Ed.  Great,  I  admit ;  but  I  liavo  dread  of  the  surviving 
woman. 

Mes.  But  on  what  woman's  account  it  is  even  that  ye  are 
afraid  ? 

(Ed.  Qf  Merope,  old  man,  with  whom  Polybus  used  to  hye. 

Mes.  But  what  is  there  of"  her  which  makes  to  your  ap- 
prehension ? 

(Ed.  a  dreadful  heaven-sent  prediction,  stranger. 

Mes.  Is  it  to  be  spoken,  or  is  it  not  lawful  that  another 
know  it  ? 


1  These  reflections  on  the  part  of  the  khig  and  queen  are  the  more  un- 
grateful, in  that  Apollo  had  just  sent  them,  without  demur,  instructions 
for  the  removal  of  the  plague.  The  whole  demeanor  of  these  impious 
personages,  who 

"  Lifted  up  so  high, 

Disdained  subjection,  and  thought  one  step  higher 

"V\'ould  set  them  highest ;" 
and  their  encouragement  of  each  other  in  irreligion.  reminds  one  forcibly 
of  Yathek  and  Nourouihar,  when  "  with  haughty  and  determined  gait" 
they  descended  the  staircase  of  Istakhar  to  the  Hall  of  Eblis.  In  both 
princes  curiosity  is  the  prime  agent ;  and  in  both  'YiSpiCj  uKporarov 
tiaavaSda'  u~6touov,  upovaev  it;  uvilyKav. 


36  CEDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  994— lOH. 

(Ed.  Most  certainly  it  is.  For  Apollo  foretold  once  that 
it  was  my  destiny  to  be  my  own  mother's  paramour,  and  with 
mine  own  hands  to  shed  my  father's  blood.  For  which  cause 
has  Corinth,  this  long  while,  been  dwelt  far  away  from  by  me, 
prosperously  indeed ;  but  still  it  is  most  sweet  to  behold  the 
faces  of  one's  parents. 

Mes.  Why,  was  it  in  dread  of  this  thou  becamest  an  exile 
from  thence  ? 

QLd.  And  from  desire  also  to  avoid  being  my  father's  mur- 
derer, old  man. 

Mes.  Why  then  have  I  not  released  thee  from  this  thy 
fear,  O  king,  since  in  fact  I  came  thy  well-wisher  ? 

Q5d.  And  if  you  do  so,  thou  shalt  have  a  right  worthy  re- 
compense of  me. 

Mes.  Ay,  and  I  swear  I  came  especially  for  this,  that,  on 
thy  restoration  to  thy  home,  I  might  in  some  way  be  advan- 
taged. 

(Ed.  But  never  will  I  come  into  the  presence  of  my  parents, 
at  least. 

Mes.  My  son,  thou^  fairly  showest  that  thou  knowest  not 
what  thou  art  doing. 

(Ed.  How,  old  man  ?  In  the  name  of  the  gods,  instruct 
me. 

Mes.  If  for  these  causes  thou  shunnest  to  return  home. 

(Ed.  It  is  at  least  from  alarm  lest  Phoebus  prove  in  the 
issue  true  toward  me. 

Mes.  Is  it  lest  thou  shouldst  contract  contamination  from 
thy  parents  ? 

(Ed.  This  very  thing,  old  man,  even  this  forever  aftVights 
me. 

Mes.  Knowest  thou  not,  then,  that  thou  tremblest  with  no 
just  cause  ? 

(Ed.  Nay,  how  should  I  not,  at  least  if  I  was  the  child  of 
these  progenitors  ? 

Mes.  Even  because  Polybus  was  in  no  wise  of  kin  to  thee. 

(Ed.  How  hast  thou  said  ?  why,  was  not  Polybus  my 
father  ? 

'  This  is  the  most  literal  construing  of  /ca/lwf  el  dr/Xoc.  On  Ka?.cJc  in 
the  sense  of  "valde,"  "prorsus,"  see  Wakefield  and  Schajfer.  Compare 
the  Latin  phrases  "  pulchre  scire,  intelligere."     B.  .-■' 


1018—1035.  (EDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  37 

Mes.  Not  a  whit  more  than  he  thou  seest  before  thee, 
about  as  much. 

CEd.  And  how  comes  one's  father  to  be  on  a  par  with  no 
one  ?  ^ 

Mes.  But  neither  he  begat  thee,  nor  I. 

(Ed.  But  in  consideration  of  what,  then,  did  he  allow  me 
a  son's  title  ? 

Mes.  Know,  it  was  from  having  received  thee  formerly  a 
present  from  my  hands. 

(Eb.  And  then  did  he,  though  from  another's  hand,  thus 
dearly  love  me  ? 

Mes.  Yes,  for  his  former  childless  state  induced  him. 

(Ed.  But  wert  thou  my  purchaser  or  parent,''  and  gavest 
me  to  him  ? 

Mes.  Having  found  thee  in  tha  kB^^IJj^Slil^  Cithaeron. 

(Ed.  But  for  what  purpose  werTmoiTT'waylarer  m^those 
said  reofions  ? 

Mes.  I  used  to  be  superintendant  there  of  the  mountain 
flocks. 

(Ed.  How  !  wert  thou  a  shepherd  and  a  wanderer  on  a 
menial  drudgery  ? 

Mes.  Ay,  but  thy  saviour  at  the  same  time,  my  son ! 

(Ed.  But  what  pain  dost  thou  find  me  suftering  in  that 
wretchedness  ? 

Mes.  The  joints  of  thy  feet  might  attest  that. 

(Ed.  Woe  is  me  !  whv  mention  this  ancient  curse  ? 

Mes.  I  unbind  thee  having  the  soles  of  thy  feet  bored 
through. 

GEd.  Dire  indignity,  indeed,  did  I  sustain  from  these 
tokens.^ 

^  This,  according'  to  Erfurdt,  is  not  to  be  understood  of  the  meanness 
or  nothingness  of  the  herdsman,  but,  as  he  paraphrases  it,  "  Qui  dici 
possunt  genuisse  ahquem,  quorum  nemo  genuit  J"  See  v.  838,  and  the 
note  following. 

2  "  Or  parent."  Hermann  remarks  that  it  might  seem  wonderful  for 
(Edipus  to  ask  this,  when  the  messenger  had  just  "told  him  that  he  was 
not  his  father  any  more  than  Polybus ;  but  that  he  must  consider 
(Edipus  as  attending  to  the  intention  of  the  old  man,  and  not  his  words. 
Hence,  too,  when  (Edipus  says  rug  6  (pvaag  kq  'iaou  tcj  /uri^evi ,  he  does 
not  allude  shghtingly  to  the  old  man,  but  merely  to  himself  having  no 
father. 

'  Brunck  translates  airupyava  by  crepundia,  child's  baubles  or  badges, 
not  supplying  Ik,  which  dpeth'niTjv  however  seems  to  require.     Perhaps 


38  CEDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  1036—1056. 

Mes.  Insomucli  that  tliou  M'ert  named  this  misfortune  as 
thou  art. 

CEd.  Say,  in  heaven's  name,  by  my  father's  or  my  mother's 
deed  ? 

Mes.  I  know  not ;  but  he  who  ff-ave  thee  understands  this 
better  than  I. 

CEd.  AVhy  didst  thou  receive  me  of  another,  nor  find  me 
thyself? 

Mes.  I  found  thee  not,  but  'tis  another  shepherd  v/ho  trans- 
ferred thee  to  me. 

CEd.  Who  was  this  ?  knowest  thou  to  designate  him  in 
words  ? 

Mes.  He  was  named,  I  am  sure,  one  of  the  servants  of 
Lai  us. 

QLd.  Of  him  who  was  monarch  of  this  land  long  ago  ? 

^Ies.  Certainly.     Of  that  very  man  was  this  a  herdsman. 

Q^^D.  And  is  he  yet  alive,  that  I  may  see  him  ? 

Mes.  You,  the  natives  of  this  country  surely  should  best 
know. 

(Ed.  Is  there  any  of  you  bystanders  who  knows  this  herds- 
man to  whom  ho  alludes,  having  seen  him  in  short  either  in 
the  country  or  here  ?  inform  me,  since  it  is  the  moment  for 
this  to  be  investio-ated.  _ 

Ch.  I,  indeed,  deem  him  none  other  than  the  "servant  from 
the  country,  whom  even  before  this  thou  soughtest  diligently 
to  see.     But,  however,  Jocasta  here  could  certify  this  the  best. 

Q^D.  Lady,  knowest  thou  him  whom  but  nov/  we  were  earn- 
est should  come,  and  of  whom  this  person  speaks  ? 

Jo.  {loildbj.)  But  who,  who  is  he  of  whom  he  spake  ? 
Ileed  it  not :  nay,  what  has  been  uttered,  do  not  wish  so 
much  as  to  remember  for  no  good. 

there  might  have  been  in  c-upyavov  a  sense  not  given  bv  lexicographers, 
from  the  verb  c-apydo),  tumeo.  Tr.,  wlio  rendered  it,  '"Ah,  dire  indig- 
nity, indeed,  did  I  bring  off  with  me  from  my  swaddling  clothes,"  Eut 
it  is  far  more  elegant  to  suppose  an  allusion  to  the  crepundia,  which  were 
hung  about  the  necks  of  children  when  exposed.  (See  V.'under's  note.) 
To  these  (Edipus  compa,rcs  the  wounds  in  his  feet.  Nicolaus  Damascenus, 
in  the  same  MS.  extract  quoted  above,  uses  the  phrase,  udei  yap  roi\ 
7ro(5af  vTro  uTzapydvov.  Seneca,  who  imitates  this  whole  scene  closely, 
understood  it  as  I  do,  act  4,  sc.  2,  39  :  Q^]dipus.  "  Xunc  adjice  certas 
corporis  nostri  notas.  Senex.  Forato  ferro  gesseras  vestigia,  Tumoro 
nactus  nomen  ac  vitio  pedum."     U. 


1057—1086.  CEDIPUS    TTRANXU3.  39 

(Ed.  This  can  not  be,  that  I  having  obtained  such  a  clew  as 
this,  shall  not  elucidate  my  descent. 

Jo.  By  the  gods  I  beg  thee,  do  not,  if  at  least  thou  care 
for  thine  own  life,  investigate  this  :  'tis  enough  that  I  be  ill 
at  ease. 

(Ed.  Courao^e  ;  for  nc^'er,  not  even  v»-ere  I  proved  by  three 
descents  a  trebly  servile  slave,  wilt  thou  be  exposed  as  base. 

Jo.  Yet  obey  me,  I  conjuie  thee  :  do  not  this. 

(Ed.  I  could  not  obey  thee  in  not  clearly  sifting  this  out. 

Jo.  And  yet  vdth  kiud  intentions  at  least  I  advise  thee  for 
the  best. 

(Ed.  Why  now  it  is  this  very  best  that  long  since  aggrieves 
me. 

Jo.  Miserable  man,  I  would  thou  mightest  never  know 
who  thou  art ! 

(Ed.  Y/ill  some  one  go  and  bring  hither  to  me  the  herds- 
man ?     But  for  her,  leave  her  to  enjoy  her  noble  lineage. 

Jo.  Woe,  woe,  unhappy  man !  for  this  only  have  1  to  say  to 
thee,  but  other  won  I  hereafter — none. 

Ch.  For  what  possible  cause  can  the  queen  be  gone,  O 
(Edipus,  having  rushed  away  under  the  impulse  of  a  wild 
anguish  ?  I  dread  lest  from  this  very  silence  there  burst  forth 
mischief. 

(Ed.  Burst  forth  whatever  v/ill  :  but  I  shall  choose  to  dis- 
cover my  origin,  even  if  it  be  humble.  But  she  perhaps, 
since  for  a  woman  she  has  a  high  spirit,  is  scandalized  at  this 
my  meanness  of  extraction.  But  I,  ranking  myself  the  child 
of  that  Chance  which  gives  me  her  blessing,  shall  not  feel 
dishonored.  For  of  her,  as  of  a  mother,  was  I  born,^  and 
the  congenial  months  ordained  me  humble  and  exalted. 
But  being  born  such,  I  could  never  turn  out  to  be  another, 
that  I  should  not  search  out  my  pedigree. 

Chorus.^  If   I  am  indeed  a  prophet,  and    knowing  in  my 

^  Hermann  understands  by  cvyyevel^  urjvsq,  menses  qui  mecuTn  fucnint, 
i.  e.,  vit<£  niece.  The  translation  above  given  is  susceptible  of  the  same 
meaning. 

•^  The  chorus  here  changes  its  tone  from  that  of  the  preceding  ode  very 
suddenly,  and  more  for  the  advantage  of  the  reader  (who  thereby  gains  a 
beautiful  snatch  of  a  Greek  allegro)  than  of  its  own  character  for  consist- 
ency. Still  tiiese  fond  ancestral  reveries  in  honor  of  a  patriot  king 
awaken  in  us  the  sense  of  contrast  by  touches  almost  Miltonic :  them- 
Beives  a  fairy  dream,  they  shape  us  out  a  fearful  reality,  "  which  sub* 


40  CEDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  1087—1121. 

mind,  thou,  O  Cithaeron,  I  swear  by  Olympus,  sLalt  not,  by 
to-morrow's  fuTPmooii,  be  witbout  experience  of  our  extolling 
tbee  at  least  as  botb  of  one  country  with  Gidipus,  and  as  his 
nurse,  and  as  his  mother,  nor  of  being  visited  by  us  in  choric 
dances,  as  performing  acceptable  service  to  my  princes.  But 
O  that  this,  Q^  Healer  Apollo,  might  be  agreeable  to  thee. 
Who,  O  son,  what  daugiiLt^  '-Of  the  immortals,  I  wonder,  was 
thy  mother,  visited  haply  as  a_par amour  by  moufttftin-ranging 
Pan,  or,  since  'tis  thou,  by  Apollo  ?  for  to  him  the  champaign 
clowns  are  all  endeared :  or  did  the  reigiuug^-prince  oJ^Cyjlene, 
or  the  Bacchanalian  god,  whose  home  is  on  the  topmost  hills, 
receive  thee  a  foundling  from  some  one  of  the  Heliconian 
nymphs,  with  whom  he  is  oftenest  frolicking. 

QiD.  If  I  too  have  any  right  to  conjecture,  old  man,  who 
have  never  yet  had  converse  with  him,  methinks  I  see  that 
very  herdsman,  whom  all  this  while  we  are  seeking.  For  in 
his  extreme  old  age  he  corresponds  as  the  cotemporary  of 
this  man  here ;  and  besides,  I  recognize  his  conductors  as 
my  own  domestics.  But  in  acquaintance  with  him  thou  very 
possibly  mayest  have  the  advantage  of  me,  from  having  seen 
the  herdsman  before. 

Ch.  Why  yes,  be  sure  I  do ;  for  I  have  known  him  since 
he  belonged  to  Laius,  trusty  in  his  degree  of  grazier,  if  ever 
another  were. 

CEd.  Thee  first  I  interrogate,  the  Corinthian  stranger,  is 
this  the  man  thou  meanest  ? 

Mes.  This  very  man  whom  thou  seest. 

(Ed.  Ho,  thou  old  man,  look  hither  toward  me,  and 
answer  to  all  that  I  shall  ask  thee.  Wert  thou  ever  in 
Laius'  service  ? 

stance  may  be  called,  yet  shadow  seems,"  and,  like  the  funeral  oration 
of  Pericles,  are  ever  linked  and  haunted  with  an  opposing  spirit,  a  mys- 
terious douhle  of  what  meets  the  ear. 

1  Hermann's  alteration  of  the  punctuation  here  has  restored  OvyuTrjp 
to  her  rightful  inheritance,  by  omitting  the  note  of  interrogation  after 
fiaKpai(l)V(j)v.  If  his  note  leave  anj^  thing  unexplained  in  full,  it  is  the 
force  of  at'  ye,  which  probably  infers  Apollo,  father  of  ffidipus,  because 
the  latter  was  so  apt  in  solving  hard  sayings.  Tr. — The  passage  is  still 
unsatisfactory ;  and  Wunder  condemns  both  r/f  Uvydrjip  and  gs  yk  as  cor- 
rupt. Perhaps  we  might  read  Wavoq  dpeanti^ard  ttov  (or  (Sardo  with 
Wunder).  Upoc~e?MaOda''  nre  ae  rir  6v}nrj]p  Ao^iov,  i.  e.,  Havoq  elre 
An^iov.  On  the  omission  of  the  first  elre,  of.  ^sch.  Ag.  1403,  and  abovo 
617,    'Aoyoiatv  nr^  tpyniaiv.     B. 


1122— 1U9.  CEDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  41 

Servant.  I  was  ;^  a  slave,  not  purchased,  but  reared  in 
his  house. 

CEd.  Concerned  in  what  avocation,  or  manner  of  life  ? 

Ser.  For  the  best  part  of  my  life  I  was  in  attendance  on 
flocks. 

CEd.  In  what  places  principally  a  resident  ? 

Ser.  It  would  be  Cithaeron,  and  it  would  be  the  adjacent/ 
districts. 

Q^D.  Well  then,  knowest  thou  this  man,  having  made 
acquaintance  with  him  any  where  in  these  parts  ? 

Ser.  As  doing  what  thing  ?  of  what  manner  of  man  even 
art  thou  speaking  ? 

Q^D.  This  man,  who  is  before  thee :  hast  thou  ever  before 
now  had  dealings  with  him  ? 

Ser.  Not  at  least  that  I  could  readily  affirm  it  from 
recollection. 

Mes.  And  no  wonder  either,  my  lord :  but  I  will  distinctly 
remind  him  of  forgotten  times ;  for  I  am  sure  he  knows  when 
in  the  region  of  CithcBron,  he  being  with  two  flocks,  I  with 
one,  I  was  the  neighbor  of  this  veiy  man  from  spring  to 
early  autumn,  three  entire  periods  of  six  months  each.  And 
when  now  it  was  winter,  I  used  on  my  part  to  drive  my 
charge  into  sheepcotes,  and  he  to  the  pens  of  Laius.  Say  I 
any  of  these  things  or  say  I  it  not  as  was  done  ? 

Ser.  Thou  speakest  the  truth,  though  in  sooth  from  a 
distant  time. 

Mes.  Come,  now  tell  me ;  rememberest  thou  to  have  given 
me  any  child  at  that  time,  that  I  might  rear  it  as  a  nursling 
to  myself? 

Ser.  But  what  means  this?  wherefore  inquirest  thou  in 
these  words  ? 

Mes.  This,  ray  comrade,  is  that  very  one  who  was  then  an 
infant. 

Ser.  "Will  not  perdition  seize  thee?  wilt  not  hold  thy 
peace  ? 

(Ed.  Hold,  old  man !  chastise  not  this  man,  since  thin^ 
own  words  have  more  need  of  a  chastiser  than  his. 

Ser.  But  in  what,  my  most  gracious  liege,  am  I  in  fault  ? 


^  Hermann  reading  r)  here,  says,  "  et  hie  quidem  aperta  eet  ^oris+i  sig' 
nificatio  neque  id  eram  quisquam,  sed  fui  vertit."     See  note  on  v.  7S3. 


42  (EDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  1150—1164. 

(Ed.  In   not  declarinof  the  child  of  whom  this   man   asts 
thee. 

Ser.  Because    he   speaks  knowing  nothing,  but  labors   in 
vain. 

CEd.  Thou    indeed   wilt  not  speak  as  a  favor,  but  to  thy 
cost  thou  shalt  speak.^  ^ 

Ser.  Do  not,  1  pray,  for  the  love  of  the  gods,  ill  use  me, 
an  old  man. 

(Ed.  Will  not  some   one   with  all  speed  tie  this   fellow's 
iands  behind  him  ? 

Ser.   Wretched    man,   for    what   purpose  ?    what    wouldst 
thou  know  more  ? 

Q^D.  Gavest  thou  to  this  man  the  boy  of  whom  he  questions 
thee? 

See.  I  did  ;  but  O  that  I  had  died  on  that  day. 

(Ed.  Nay,  to  this  thou  wilt  come,  at  least  if  thou  speak 
not  the  truth. 

Ser.    Much    more    certain    is    my    destruction,  if  I   shall 
speak. 

(Ed.  This  fellow,  it  seems,  is  driving  at  delay. 

Ser.  Not  I,  truly  ;  but  I  said  long   ago    that  I  had  given 
the  boy. 

<Ed.    Whence  liaving  got  him  ?  of  thine   own  house  or  of 
any  other  ? 

Ser.  Surely  I  gave  not  my  own  away,  but  I  received  him 
from  some  one. 

(Ed.  From  whom  among  these  citizens,  and  from  a  bouse 
of  what  degree  ? 

*  Tlie  altercation  with  Creon,  and  Ibis  scene  with  the  shepherds,  from 
the  snarling  repartee  which  runs  through  then],  are  supposed  by  Twining 
to  be  among  the  parts  of  our  poet  which  gave  occasion  to  the  ridiculous 
idea  of  a  comic  writer  in  Diogenes  Laerlius  (4.  20.)  that  Sophocles  had 
a  dog  to  help  him  write  tragedies ;  uvuv  ng  edoKsi  avuTroulv  MoAoTrmoc. 
That  eminent  translator  seems  to  forget  that  anger  levels  most  men,  and 
that  of  kings  especially  '-the  wrath  is  great;"  he  forgets  that  every  pass- 
age, he  has  produced  from  Sophocles  lo  this  point,  is  the  expression  of 
angry  feeling ;  he  forgets  tlie  simplicity  of  tlie  times  of  which  ho  la 
writing.  But  when  he  quotes  Longinus,  to  prove  that  in  these  places 
the  spirit  of  Sophocles  ciievvvrai  u/mjijJc,  koI  ■niTrret  drvxiararu-  putting 
aside  that  as  to  Loaginus's  meaning  he  begs  the  question,  let  him  show 
t.hat  Longinus  ever  wrote  naturally  for  ten  lines  together,  ere  he  takes 
ibat  really  great  critic's  dictum  on  the  expression  of  heated  feelings. 


11G5— 118G.  (EDIPUS    TYRAXXUS.  43 

Ser.  Do   not   for   the   gods'   sake,    do   not,  my  sovereign, 
inquire  further. 

(Ed.  Thou  diest,  if  I  shall  ask  thee  this  again. 

Ser.  It  was  then  one  ol:'  Laius'  otispring. 

(Ed.  a  slave,  or  one  by  birth  of  kin  to  him  ? 

Ser.  Woe  is  me !  I  am  surely  on  the  verge  of  speaking 
the  very  horror. 

(Ed.  And  I  surely  of  hearing  :  yet  it  must  be  heard. 

Ser.  Why  then,  it  Avas  said  to  be  actually  his  own  child  ; 
but  the  lady  Avithiu  could  best  inform  thee  how  this  stands. 

(Ed.  Why,  is  she  the  donor  of  this  child  to  thee  ? 

Ser.  Even  so,  sire. 

(Ed.  For  what  purpose  ? 

Ser.  That  I  might  make  away  with  him. 

(Ed.  The  own  mother,  hard-hearted  V 

Ser.  In  horror,  however,  of  evil  prophecies. 

(Ed.  Of  what  import  ? 

Ser.  There  was  a  story,  that  he  should  be  his  parents' 
murderer. 

(Ed.  How  earnest  thou  then  to  resign  him  to  this  elder  ? 

Ser.  Pitying  it,  my  liege,  as  supposing  that  he  would 
carry  him  away  to  another  land,  whence  he  himself  v>'a3  :  but 
he  reserved  him  for  the  direst  miseries  :  for  if  thou  art  he 
whom  this  man  declares  thee  to  be,  knov*^  thou  art  born  to  a 
cursed  destiny. 

CEd.  Alas !  alas !  All  the  predictions  turn  out  true."  O 
light,  may  I  look  on  thee  now  for  the  last  time  :  I,  that  have 
been  shown  the  son  of  those  of  v/hom  I  should  not  have  been, 
holding  commerce  with  those  with  whom  it  became  me  not, 
and  having  killed  whom  it  was  my  duty  never. 

Chorus.  jCL^geuerations  of  mortals,  how  as  nothing  do  I 
reckon  you  in  tbis  life  !  For  wher.',  where  is  the  man  that 
achieves  more  of  happiness,^  than  barely  so  much  as  to  fancy 


^  Eifurdt  has  a  note  here  from  Euhnken's  Preface  to  Scheller's  Lexi- 
con, which  seems  uncalled  for.     T'/S/ul  means  '•  to  have  the  heart"  to  do 
any  thing ;  and  t/jiuuv  here  takes  this  signification  much  better,  surely, 
than  that  of  perdlta  or  r.iiser. 
2  See  Wunder  on  v.  922.     B. 
'  Grotius  elegantly  translates  : 

"Hffic  est  sola  beatitas  Ilumano  generi  data, 
Quam  quis  dum  putat  accipit,  Ammittitque  putando."  B. 


44  CEDIPUS    TYRANXUS.  1187—1237. 

he  has  it,  and  so  fancying  to  fall  away  from  it  ?  Even^  thine 
example  having  before  me,  thy  destiny,  even  thine,  O  hapless 
(EJipus,  I  term^  nothing  of  mortal  fortunes  happy:  thou 
^Yho  with  excess  of  fortune  aimed  at  and  achieved  the  prize 
of  all-blissful  prosperity,  O  Jove !  having  done  to  death  the 
maiden  prophetess  with  forked  talons,  nay,  a  bulwark  against 
slaughters  didst  thou  stand  up  to  my  country,  whence  also 
thou  art  titled  my  sovereign,  and  hast  been  supremely  digni- 
fied with  honor,  lording  it  in  Thebes Jhe  mighty.  But  now 
as  I  hear,  who  is  more  miserable  ?  who  in  reverse  of  state  is 
more  familiar  with  cruel  griefs  and  troubles?  Alas!  Oh 
glorious  majesty  of  (Edipus,  to  whom  one  and  the  same 
ample  haven  was  enough  for  son  and  fiither  as  a  bridegroom 
to  run  into:  how  ever,  how  ever  were  thy  father's  furrows 
enabled  to  endure  thee  in  silence  so  long,  unfortunate  ?  Time 
the  all-seeing  detected  thee  reluctant;  justice  long  since 
sentences  the  marriageless  marriage,  begetting  and  begotten. 
Oh  !  son  of  Laiiis,  would,  would  that  I  "had  never  seen  thee. 
For  I  mourn  with  passing  sorrow  from  loudly-plaintive  lips. 
Yet  to  tell  the  truth,  by  the  bounty  have  I  drawn  my  breath 
again,  and  closed  mine  eyes  in  repose. 

Messenger  Extraordinary.  O  ye,  ever  respected  the 
most  highly  of  this  land,  what  deeds  shall  ye  hear,  what 
deeds  shall  ye  witness,  hov/  heavy  a  grief  shall  ye  have  to 
bear,  if  from  a  feeling  of  kindred  ye  are  yet  concerned  for 
the-Jiouse  of  Labdaciis?  For,  I  believe,  neither  Ister^  nor 
£hasis,  cmTld  lave~~vvith  water  of  purification  this  roof  before 
you  of  all  which  it  conceals  :  while  other  ills  Avill  forthwith 
show  themselves  to  the  light,  ills  voluntary,  and  not  unin- 
tended. But  of  mischiefs,  "those  are  the  most  afflicting  which 
show  themselves  self-incurred. 

Ch.  ^N'ay,  even  what  we  knew  before  lacks  nauo-ht  of  being 
deeply  dej^lorable  :  but  what  hast  thou  to  tell  in  addition  to 
those  ? 

M.  E.  The  speediest  of  tales  both  to  tell  and  to  hear :  the 
most  noble  Jocasta  is  no  more. 

Ch.  Most  unhappy  woman  !  By  what  earthly  means  ? 

M.  E.    Herself   by  her  own  hand.      But  of   the  action  the 

'  TTnnder  moro  rightly  reads  witli  Camorarius  ruv  g6v  toi,  "holding 
thy  fortunes,  yea  thine,  as  an  example."    B. 

=i  ovdna  i3  against  the  meter,  and  altered  by  Hermann.     B. 


1238—1271.  (EDIPU3    TTEANNUS.  45 

most  painful  part  is  spared  us,  since  the  eyc-^itness  is  not 
ours ;  but  yet,  as  far  at  least  as  the  memory  of  them  resides 
in  me,  thou  shalt  hear  the  sufferings  of  that  lost  princess. 
For  when,  instinct  with  fury,  she  passed  by  within  the  portal, 
she  went  straight  to  her  bridal  bed,  tearing  her  hair  with 
both  her  hands ;  and  having,  as  soon  as  she  was  within, 
violently  closed  the  doors  on  the  inside,  she  cries  on  Laius, 
now  long  since  dead,  bearing  in  memory  that  ancient  issue 
by  whose  hands  he  was  himself  to  die,  and  leave  the  mother 
to  his  own,  a  procreatress  of  wreicjied  .  children.  But  she 
mourned  over  the  couch  where  she  had  become,  unfortunate, 
the  mother  of  a  double  progeny,  husbands  by  husband, 
children. .  by^  children,  -  And  how  after  this  she  perished  I 
have  no  further  knowledge ;  for  Qj]dipus  with  outcries  broke 
in,  for  whom  it  was  impossible  for  us  to  witness  her  fate  to 
its  end ;  but  we  turned  our  eyes  on  him  ro\'ing  round.  For 
be  begins  wildly  rushing,  beseeching  us  to  furnish  him  with 
a  weapon,  and  tell  him  where  to  reach  "  the  wife  yet  no 
v.ife,  his  mother  with  her  common  womb  for  himself  and  his 
children."  To  him  in  his  frenzy  some  unearthly  power  dis- 
covers this,  for  it  was  no  one  of  us  men  who  were  standing 
by :  but  shouting  fearfully,  as  with  some  guide  to  lead  him 
he  sprung  in  against  the  double  doors,  and  from  their  very 
deepest  fastening  he  wrenched  the  hollow  staples,  and  falls 
in  upon  the  apartment ;  where  we  then  looked  in  upon  his 
wife  suspended,  entangled  in  twisted  nooses.  But  he,  when 
he  sees  her,  with  horrible  bellowings,  poor  wretch  !  loosens 
the  hanging  knot ;  but  when  the  hapeless  was  laid  on  the 
ground,  the  sequel  v>a3  awful  to  behold :  for  having  torn  off 
from  her  the  gold-exiibossed  cLa^s'  of  her  vestments,  where- 
with she  used'''fo~adorn  herself,  ho  lifted  them  and  smote  the 
balls  of  his  own  eyes,  uttering  words  of  this  sort,  "  that  'twas 
because  they  had  discerned  for  him  neither  what  mischiefs 

'  Perhaps  this  was  an  attempt  of  the  poet  to  reconcile  his  fair-armed 
country-women  to  long  sleeves,  they  having  lost  the  privilege  of  the 
TTspovai  by  their  inhuman  conduct  toward  the  ^ole  survivor  of  the  dis- 
astrous ^.ginetan  expeditioo-  See  Herod,  v.  87  ;  on  T^-hich  place  Larch- 
erquotes  an  old  scholiast,  to  prove  that  the  Lacedremonians  adopted 
this  dress  with  clasps  in  order  to  make  their  womeTf  masculine,  and  the 
^^lllgnia!ja.the  Ionian  with  a  view  to  the  opposite  effect.  As  the  Ajgivo 
IaiiLe«-wore  large  clasps  on  this  same  event  taking  place,  'tis  to  be  hoped 
they  did  not  worship  Juno  in  vain. 


46  (EDIPUS    TYRAXXUS.  1272—1307. 

he  was  siifFerIng,  nor  vvliat  lie  was  do'mrr  -^  but  darkly  should 
they  see,  for  the  time  to  come,  those  Avhom  he  ought  ^ever 
to  have  seen,  nor  should  they  recognize  those  whom  he  so 
longed  to  recognize."  Venting  curses  such  as  these  full 
often,  and  not  once  only^  did  he  wound  them,  forcing  up  his 
eyelids.  And  at  once  the  bloody  pupils  bedewed  his  cheeks, 
nor  emitted  mere  humid  drops  of  gore,  but  all  at  once,  a 
fhower  of  sable  blood-clot  hail  was  shed.^  These  are  miseries 
that  broke  forih  of  two,  not  of  him  alone,  but  the  consorted 
miseries  of  a  husband  and  a  wife.  For  their  happiness  of  a 
long  date  before,  'twas  hitherto  deserving  of  the  name ;  but 
now,  on  this  very  day,  lamentation,  ruin,  death,  dishonor  of 
whatsoever  ill  whatever  name  there  be,  not  one  is  Avanting. 
-.   Ch.  But  in  what  respite  from  ill  is  the  sufferer  now  ? 

M.  E.  He  is  shouting  for  some  one  to  open  the  barriers, 
and  expose  to  all  the  race  of  Cadmus  the  slayer  of  his  father, 
his  mother's — uttering  unholy  things,  things  not  for  me  to 
speak  ;  purposing  seemingly  to  make  himself  an  outcast  from 
the  land,  nor  any  longer  to  tarry  in  his  home  accursed,  as  ho 
cursed  himself.  Yet  still  he  wants  strenirth  at  least,  and 
some  one  for  his  guide  ;  since  his  disease  is  greater  than  ho 
can  bear.  Nay,  he  will  show  thee  so  himself.  For  these 
fastenings  of  the  gates  are  being  opened,  and  speedily  shalt 
thou  behold  a  spectacle  of  such  a  sort  as  even  an  enemy  must 
pity. 

Ch.  Oh,  disaster  fearful  to  mankind  to  behold  !  Oh  most 
fearful  of  all  that  I  have  ever  yet  encountered !  What 
frenzy,  sad  sufferer,  beset  thee  ?  AYliat  demon  is  it  that, 
with  mightier  than  the  mightiest  bound,  hath  sprung  on 
thine  unblest  fate  ?  Woe,  v>'oe,  unfortunate  !  But  1  can  not 
so  much  as  look  on  thee,  anxious  as  I  am  to  question  much, 
much  to  learn,  and  much  to  see,  such  shuddering  dost  thou 
cause  me. 

GEd.  Oh,  Oh,  Oh,  Oh,  alas,  alas,  wretch  that  I  am  ! 
whither  on  earth  am  I,  miserable,  carried  ?     Where  is  Hitting 

'  nermann  joins  tho  words  7to7,?iukic  re  kovk  uttq^  with  e(l>vfiv:Zv\  and 
says  of  Elmsley's  punctuation  that  it  gives  a  meaninp:  "  justo  crudclius." 
The  imperfect  iipaaae^  however,  favors  tho  old  way  of  rendering.  Potter 
translates  as  Hermann. 

2  The  two  following  verses  are  bracketed  by  Dindorf,  and  considered 
corrupt  by  "Wunder.     B. 


1303—1359.  (EDIPUS    TYRANis'US.  47 

this   voice   wliicli   I   lieav  thus  liurriedly  ?     Oh,  fate,  whither 
hast  thou  leaped  ? 

Ch.  To  horror,  not  fit  for  li earing,  nor  for  sight. 

(Ed.  O  cloud  of  my  darkness,  abominable,  falling  upon  me 
imspeahable,  in  that  thou  art  alike  unconquerable,  and  all- 
prosparous  to  my  bane.  Ah  me  !  Ah  me  !  again  and  again, 
Ah  me !  How  hath  sunk  dee])  within  me  hand  in  hand  at 
onc3  the  maddening  sting  of  these  goads,  and  the  memory  of 
my  woes !  ^ 

Ch.  And   surely   it   is   no   wonder,   in    afflictions   great   as  / 
these,  that  thou  hast  a  double  sorrow,  and  beaiest  double  ills.     I 

(Ed.  O  my  fiieud,  thou  as  mine  adherent  art  still  constant, 
for  still  dost  thou  submit  to  care  for  me  the  blind.  Alas  ! 
alas  !  for  thou  escapest  me  not,  but  well  do  I  know  thee, 
darkened  though  I  be,  at  least  thy  voice. 

Ch.  O  thou   of   dreadful  deeds,  how  hadst  thou  the  heart 
thus  to  mangle  thine  eyes  ?     What   higher  power  prompted  [ 
thee  to  it  ?  ^ 

(Ed.  Apollo  was  he,  Apollo,  O  my  friends,  that  brought 
to  pass  these  my,  my  wretched  sufferings.  But  no  one  wil- 
fully pierced  them,  but  hapless  I.  For  what  need  hr.d  I  of 
sight,  I,  to  whom  when  seeing  there  was  naught  sve^-t  to 
look  on  ? 

Ch.  This  was  so,  even  as  thou  sayest. 

(Ed.  What  then,  I  pray,  have  I,  object  of  sight,  of  love,  of 
accost,  that  I  could  hear  any  longer  v/ith  pleasure,  my  friends  ? 
Bear  me  away  from  the  place  with  all  s}>eed,  bear  me  away,  my 
friends,  the  monstrous  destruction,  the  most  accursed,  and  most 
god-cletested  of  human  kind. 

Cn.  O  lamentable  alike  in  thy  feeling  and  th}^  fate,  how  have 
I  wished  that  I  at  least  had  never  known  thee  ! 

(Ed.  Perish  he,  whosoever  he  be,  that  took  me  from  the 
barbarous  chain  that  pastured  on  my  feet,  and  rescued  and  pre- 
seived  me  from  a  violent  death  earning  a  thankless  return  ;  for 
had  I  died  then,  I  had  not  been  so  great  a  sorrow  to  my  friends 
nor  self 

Ch.  This  would  have  been  to  ray  wish  also. 

OEd.  Ay,  then  I  had  not  come  the  slayer  of  my  father  at 
least,  nor  been  titled  by  mankind  the  bridegroom  of  those  of 
"whom  I  sprung.  But  now  am  I  a  godless  being,  child  of  unho- 
ly parents,  allied  to  those  from  whom  I  wretched  drev/  my  birth. 


48  (EDIPUS    TYRANNUS.  1360—1384 

But  if  there  be  in  kind  one  evil  among  evils  paramount,  tiiis  to 
his  share  hath  (Edipus. 

Ch.  I  know  not  how  to  say  that  thou  hast  well  advised ;  for 
thou  wert  better  to  live  no  longer  than  live  in  blindness. 

CEd.  That  this  hath  not  been  best  done  thus,  tutor  me  not, 
nor  counsel  me  longer.  P'or  I  know  not  v>ath  what  manner 
of  eyes  beholding,  I  could  have  looked  my  father  in  the  face 
when  I  went  down  to  Hades,^  no,  nor  my  hapless  mother,  to 
both  of  whom  deeds  havTl55en  done  by  me  that  hanging  is 
too  good  for.  But  forsooth  the  sight  of  my  children  was  to 
be  coveted  by  me  to  see,  springing  forth  as  they  sprung. 
No,  to  my  eyes  never  :  nor  citadel,  -nor  towor.^  nor  eacred^ 
iniages__of  gods,  whereof  ITtKe  all-unhappy,  noblest  by  birth 
of  any  one  at  least  in  Thebes,  have  bereaved  my  own  self, 
myself  enjoining  all  to  thrust  out  the  impious  one,  the  man 
branded  of  heaven  as  polluted^  [and  proved  to  be]  of  the  race 
of  Laius,  could  I,  who  h.ad  exposed  such  a  blot  in  mine  own 
person,  ever  look  on  these  with  steadfast  eyes?  No,  never, 
surely  !  Nay,  had  there  been  yet  means  of  stoppage  of  the 
fountain  of  hearing  through  my  ears,  I  would  not  have  re- 
frain2d  from  blocking  up  my  miserable  body,  that  I  might 
have  been  both  sightless  and  devoid  of  hearing  :^  for  to  have 
one's  feelings  abiding  beyond  reach  of  one's  misfortunes  were 
sweet.  Alas,  Cithseron,  wherefore  harboredst  thou  me  ? 
wherefore  havinq;  taken  mo  in  diJ.st  thou  not  fortwith  kill 
me,  that  I  had  never  shown  mankind  in  the  lineaofe  whence  I 
sj^rang  P     O^Polybus  and.  Corinth,  and  ancient  halls,  reputed 

1  The  ancients  believed  that  whatever  defects  or  injuries  men  suffered 
during  hfe,  they  carried  with  tliem  to  the  shades  below.  Thus,  in  Virgil, 
^n.  vi.  450,  ^neas  meets  Dido  "recens  a  vulnerc,"  and  495,  "  Dei- 
phobuin  vidit,  lacerum  crudeliter  ora."  So  Clytaamnestra  says  in-^sch. 
Eum.  103,  upa  (5t  7i7.r]ydg  Tuai)e.     B. 

2  Hermann's  punctuation  has  been  followed  here  in  joining  Kal  yfvovc 
Toi'  An'iov  to  the  next  line.  Tii. — I  have  preferred  following  Dindorf  and 
"Wunder.    B. 

3  "  ilic  etsi  imperfectum  recto  so  habet,  ut  essem  coecus  et  surdus,  tamen 
ctiam  aoristo  locus  est,  utfactm  essem  cuecvs  et  surdus,  verbo  /)  idem  quod 
iyevuiiriv  significante."     Herm.  Pref  see  note  on  v.  793. 

4  nermann,  reading  r/r,  observes  that  here,  if  any  where,  an  aorist 
might  be  thought  needful,  to  express  the  sense  6>r  Ichi^a  /it/ttots  ivOev 
iyevv7j0r]v.  But  though  ?)  without  the  participle  would  stand  for  tyev- 
VTjBriv,  with  it  ?}  will  not,  because  yeyug  implies  time  present,  and  thus 
fj  yeyuc  would  bo  unde  natics  fuissem,  a  proper  expression  of  one  once. 


1333—1433]  OEDIPUS  TYRANNUS.  4y 

iiiv  ancc?toi's',  what  a  goodly  outside  skin  of  scars  beneath 
have  ye  reared  me !  For  now  am  I  discovered  vile,  and  of 
the  vile.  O  ye  three  i-oads,  and  thou  concealed  dell,  and 
oaken  copse,  and  narrow  outlet  of  tln-ee  ways,  v/hich  drank 
mine  own  blood  from  my  father,  shed  by  mine  own  liands,  do 
ye  remember  me  how  that  I — what  deeds  having  done  to  you, 
then  came  hither,  and  again  v/hat  deeds  I  perpetrated  ?  O 
bridals,  bridals,  ye  have  begotten  us,  and  having  begotten, 
again  ye  brought  to  light  the  selfsame  seed,  and  display  fa- 
thers, brothers,  sons,  blood  all  of  one  tribe,  brides,  v/ives,  and 
mothers,  and  all  the  deeds  that  are  most  infamous  amona;  man- 
kind.  But,  for  it  is  not  fitting  to  utter  Avhat  neither  is  it  fit- 
ting to  do,  with  all  speed,  in  heaven's  name,  hide  me  some- 
where far  av/ay,  or  slay  me,  or  set  me  adrift  on  the  sea,  v/herc 
never  again  ye  shall  behold  me.  Come,  deign  to  touch  a  wretch 
forlorn.  Be  prevailed  on,  fear  not ;  for  evils  such  as  mine  no 
mortal  but  I  is  liable  to  bear. 

Cii.  But  for  what  thou  requestest  at  an  apt  moment  comes 
Creon  here,  to  act  or  to  advise,  since  he  is  left  sole  protector 
of  the  realm  in  thj'^  room. 

G^^D.  Woe  is  me]  In  what  w^ords  then  shall  we  address 
him  ?  What  trust  shall  there  in  reason  be  shown  to  me  by 
him  ?  For  in  the  former  transactions  have  I  been  discovered 
altogether  base  toward  him. 

Creox.  Not  as  a  scoffer,  OEdipus,  have  I  come,  nor  to  re- 
proach thee  with  any  of  the  former  wrongs.  But  do  yc,  if  yc 
no  longer  blush  before  the  race  of  man,  at  all  events  respect 
more  the  fire  of  the  royal  sun  that  feeds  all  things,  than  to 
exhibit  a  pollution  such  as  this  thus  uncovered,  which  neither 
earth,  nor  heaven-sent^  rain,  nor  light  will  put  up  w^ith.  But 
as  speedily  as  possible  convey  him  to  his  home ;  for  that  those 
of  the  family  alone  should  see  and  hear  the  miseries  of  a  rela- 
tive, is  what  piety  requires. 

Qi^D.  For  the  gods'  sake,  since  thou  hast  forced  me  from' 
my  expectation  by  coming  the  noblest  of  men  as  thou  art,  to 

but  no  longer  alive  :  el/u.t  yeyur  then  standing  for  the  present,  ?/v  yeyug 
becomes  froin  a  pluperfect  an  imperfect;  and  if  by  the  laws  of  the  language 
cjg  del^u)  tvOei>  el.ul  jeyug,  when  changed  by  a  person  speaking  of  a  past 
event,  would  have  required  ug  iSsi^a  tuOei'  ijv  yeycjr,  then  is  the  latter 
form  correct  here.     See  note  on  v.  793. 

'  6/ij3pog  Ipor.     So  Slag  ipojiddor,  Eurip.  Helen.  2. — B. 

c 


50  CEDIPUS  TYRANNUS.  [1434— 14G3. 

mc  the  vilest,  concede  one  thing  to  me,  for  I  will  speak  for  thy 
interest  unci  not  mine. 

Ck.  And  to  obtain  what  demand  art  thou  thus  urgent  vrith 
me? 

Qili).  Cast  me  out  from  this  land  with  what  haste  thou  may- 
cst,  where  I  shall  be  found  by  no  earthly  being  to  be  spoken 
wdth 

Cn.  had  done  it,  of  this  be  satisfied,  had  I  not  first  of 
all  been  anxious  to  learn  from  the  divinity  what  was  to  be 
done. 

CEd.  But  surely  his  whole  prophetic  answer  openly  ordered 
to  put  to  death  the  parricide,  the  impious,  myself. 

Cu.  So  this  was  said ;  but  still  in  the  emergency  wherein 
we  arc  placed,  'twere  better  to  learn  what  is  to  be  done. 

QCd.  Will  ye  then  thus  inquire  cn  behalf  of  a  creature  ut- 
terly fallen  ? 

Ck.  Yes  :  for  even  thou  surely  mightest  now  give  credit  to 
the  cod. 

Q]d.  To  thee  then  do  I  solemnly  give  cliarge,  and  will 
exhort  thee  too ;  of  her  within  the  house  make  such  sepulture 
as  thou  choosest,  for  duly  wilt  thou  perform  this  on  behalf  of 
thine  own  at  least.^  But  me,  never  let  this,  the  city  of  my 
fathers,  deign  to  admit  a  living  inhabitant ;  no,  suffer  me  to 
abide  in  the  mountains,  where  is  that  very  CithaTon  surnamed 
mine,  which  both  my  father  and  mother  allotted  to  me  yet 
living  as  my  proper  tomb,  th.at  I  may  die  by  their  counsel, 
who  were  indeed  my  destroyers.  And  yet  this  much  at  least 
I  know,  tht'it  neither  disease  nor  any  other  chance  shall  be 
my  downfall ;  for  never  had  I  been  saved  in  the  hour  of  death, 
imless  for  some  dreadful  evil.  But  for  mv  fate,  let  it  2:0  which 
way  soever  it  will :  but  for  my  children,  on  the  males  I  would 
not,  Creon,  thou  shouldest  concern  thyself  more  ;  they  are 
men,  so  that  they  never  can  feel  a  scarcity  of  sustenance 
Avherever  tlicy  shall  chance  to  be  ;  but  on  my  hapless  and 
pitiable  girls,  before  Vviiom  Avas  never  my  table  laid  without 

*  Tuv,  sell,  rot  av.  See  v.  144G  (ed.  Herm.)  and  Eurip.  Med.  v.  1011. 
Porson. 

^  Jocasta  being  liis  sister.  The  confidence  reposed  by  Qi]dipns  in  one 
who  was  afterward  to  a})pcar  as  the  infringer  of  these  most  sacred  rights, 
and  that  toward  CEdipus's  son  and  his  own  nephew,  is  introduced  with 
the  poet's  usual  refinement  of  art. 


} 


1464— 1501. J  CEDIPUS  TYRANTs^US.  51 

food,  Avaiiting  mj  own  presence,  but  of  all  that  I  touched  were 
tlicy  two  ever  the  partakers :  for  whom  do  thou  interest  thee 
for  my  sake ;  and  above  all,  suffer  me  to  feel  them  with  mine 
hands,  and  pour  a  last  lament  over  their  misfortunes.  Do  it, 
O  prince,  do  it,  O  thou  thyself  of  pure  lineage  and  noble. 
Surely  if  I  touched  them  with  these  hands,  I  should  fancy  J 
held  them,  even  as  when  I  had  my  sight.  What  shall  I  say  ? 
Tell  me,  in  the  name  of  the  gods,  do  I  no<^  surely  hear  my  dar- 
lings crying  ?  And  has  Creon  in  compassion  sent  me  the  best 
beloved  of  my  children  ?     Am  I  right  ? 

Ck.  Thou  art  right ;  for  I  am.  he  that  supplied  thee  with 
these  babes,  having  known  the  yet  lively  delight  which  from 
old  time  possessed  thee  in  them. 

CEd.  Then  all  happiness  to  thee,  and  for  this  their  coming 
may  thy  tutelary  power  protect  thee  better  than  me.  My 
children,  where  can  ye  be?  drav/  near  hither,  come  to  these 
my  fraternal  hands,  which  have  thus  served  the  once  briirht 
eyes  of  the  author  of  your  being  for  you  to  see  ;  of  me,  my 
children,  who  without  sight,  without  question  of  it,  was 
proved  your  father  by  that  source  from  Avhence  myself  had 
been  raised.  And  for  you  I  weep,  for  I  have  no  power  to 
behold  you,  in  imagining  the  rest  of  your  bitter  life,  with 
what  treatment  at  men's  hands  ye  are  doomed  to  live  it  out. 
For  to  what  social  meetings  of  the  citizens  will  ye  come  ? 
nay,  to  what  festivals,  Avlience  ye  will  not  betake  yourselves 
home  all  in  tears  in  place  of  enjoyment  from  the  scene.^ 
But  when  a.t  length  ye  shall  have  come  to  marriageable  years, 
who  will  be  he?  who  will  rashly  risk,  my  children,  to  incur 
such  scandals  as  will  be  destruction  to  those  at  once  my 
parents  and  yours  ?  For  what  horror  is  wanting  ?  your  father 
murdered  his  father ;  committed  incest  with  that  mother 
whose  seed  he  was  himself,  and  from  the  self-same  source 
whence  he  was  born,  begat  himself  you.  In  such  sort  will 
ye  be  reviled ;  and  then  who  v\'ill  espouse  you.  There  is  not 
a  man,  my  children  ;  but  too  plainly  is  it  your  destiny  to  pine 

^  If  Musgrave's  references  to  ^^schylus's  Choephorse,  vv.  450  and  719 
(ed.  131am.)  be  correct,  and  they  arc  approved  by  Abreschius  and  B!om- 
field,  the  passage  can  not  stand  as  the  former  edition,  following  Brunck, 
has  it,  viz.,  •'from  whence  ye  will  not  return  lamented  rather  than  the 
spv?ctacle  exhibited;"  because  kck?  avfiivac  in  neither  of  those  passages 
has  a  passive  sense,  and  is  by  Blomfield  translated  lachrymis  perfusus. 


52  CEDIPUS  TYRANNUS.  [1501—1527. 

to  death  barren  and  nnwedded.  Ikit  since,  O  son  of  MenoeceuSa 
thou  an  left  sole  fatiicr  to  these  twain,  for  we  their  natural  pa^ 
rents  are  both  fallen  victims  to  destruction,  do  not  thou  look 
on  and  see  them,  thy  kindred,  beggars,  husbandless,  wanderers, 
nor  make  them  sharers  in  my  woes ;  but  pity  them,  seeing 
them  as  thou  dost  at  their  tender  years  destitute  of  every  thing, 
except  as  far  as  thy  part  goes.  Accord  this,  O  noble  sir,  pledg- 
ing me  with  thine  hand.  But  to  you,  my  children,  if  ye  had 
already  understanding,  I  would  have  given  much  advice ;  but 
now^  pi'ay  this  on  my  behalf,  that  I  may  ever  live  where  it  is 
for  me  to  live,  and  may  ye  meet  with  a  better  life  than  that 
of  the  father  who  begot  you. 

Ch.  Enough  of  tears  hast  thou  shed,  go  now  within  doors. 

Ql^d.  I  must  needs  obey,  though  it  be  no  pleasing  thing. 

Cr.  Whv,  all  thiniTS  are  becomino;  in  their  season. 

Q^D.  Know  you  then  on  what  conditions  I  will  go  ? 

Cr.  Thou  shalt  tell  me,  and  hearing  1  shall  then  know. 

(SEd.  That  thou  wilt  send  me  into  exile  from  this  land. 

Cr.  Thou  askest  me  what  is  the  gods'  to  give. 

CEb.  But  to  the  gods  at  least  I  come  most  odious. 

Cr.  AVherefore,  be  sure  thou  shalt  be  quickly  gratified. 

CEd.  Saycst  thou  so,  then  ? 

Cr.  Yes,  for  what  I  mean  not  I  am  not  wont  idly  to  say. 

QCd.  Away  with  me  then  from  this  spot  now. 

Cr.  Proceed  then,  and  let  go  thy  children. 

CKd.  By  no  means  take  these  at  least  from  me. 

Cr.  Seek  not  to  have  thy  way  in  every  thing,  for  that 
wherein  thou  hadst  thy  will  conduced  not  to  thy  welfare  in 
life. 

CnORrs.  O  inhabitants  of  Thebes  my  country,  behold,  this 

/  QCdipus,  who  solved  the  famous  enigma,  and  was  the  most 

exalted  of  mankind,  who,  looking  with  no  envious  eye^  upon 

the  enviable  ibrtuijes  of  the  citizens,  into  how  vast  a  stormy 

^  evx^(^Oe  can  not,  I  think,  be  taken  passively,  and  I  have  therefore 
followed  Dindorf,  whose  emendation  is  also  adopted  by  ^^'under.  In 
itaiph^  there  is,  I  think,  a  double  meaning,  both  of  the  fated  spot  where 
(Edipus  should  dwell  or  die,  and  a  reference  to  its  ordinary  meaning,  as 
less  shockinrr  to  the  hearers. — B. 

-  Erfardt  has  a  long  and  excellent  note  on  the  word  ^7rij3?.t-7ruv,  which 
he  shows  to  answer  exactly  the  Latin  "  invidens."  Hermann's  reading 
has  been  followed  for  the  rest. — Tn.  I  have  given  the  best  sense  to  this 
p^ssa^e  in  r.;y  power,  but  I  still  think  C?/'/(;J  kcl  Ti\\aic  a  harsh  endyadif 


1528—1530.]  GEDIPUS  TYRAXNUS.  53 

sea  of  tremGncIoiis  misery  he  hath  come !  Then  mortal  as 
thou  art,  looking  out  for  a  sight  of  that  day,  the  last,^  call  no 
man  happy,  ere  he  shall  have  crossed  the  boundary  of  life,  the 
sufferer  of  nought  painfuL 

for  ^Tj^iidToiQ  TvxaLc,  and  that  C'P-'^  would  be  more  naturally  joined  with 
£-ifi'A£-.Tt)v.     Should  we  read — 7ro?ATU)v  riir  ri'xag  £Tn[3?iETnjv  ! — B. 
^  "  The  first  dark  day  of  nothingness, 
The  last  day  of  danger  and  distress," 
says  Lord  Byron,  and  so  said  (in  part,  at  least)  Solon  before  him.     But 
Aristotle,  who  was  not  a  man  to  adopt  hypothesis  for  fact,  whether  sup- 
ported by  poet  or  philosopher,  disputing  the  first  axiom  in  toto,  brings 
*.he  second  into  considerable  doubt. — Eth.  1. 


tl— 15. 


(EDIPUS  COLONEUS. 


<^DiPUs,  banished  from  Thebes,  comes  to  Athens  under  the  guidance  of 
his  daughter  Antigone,  in  fulfillment  of  an  oracle,  which  declared  that 
he  should  end  his  days  near  the  wood  of  the  Euraenides.  Creon  makes 
an  unsuccessful  attempt  to  carry  him  back  to  Thebes,  as  also  Polynices, 
as  the  oracle  had  declared  that  victory  would  attend  those  among  whom 
CEdipus  should  die.  But  CEdipus  remains  firm,  and  having  charged 
Theseus  concerning  his  future  conduct,  he  disappears  amid  a  fearful 
storm,  and  the  place  of  his  burial  is  handed  down  to  none  save  the  per- 
petual successors  to  the  throne  of  Athens. — B. 


DRAMATIS  PERSOX.E. 


CEdipus. 

Antigone. 

Citizen  of  Colonus, 

Chorus  of  Attic  Elders, 

ISMENE. 


Theseus. 

Creon. 

Polynices. 

Messenger. 


CEdipus.  Child  of  a  blind  old  man,  Antigone,  to  what 
regions  are  we  come,  or  city  of  what  people  ?  who  will  wel- 
come CEdipus  the  Avanderer  for  the  present  day  with  scantiest 
alms,  craving  but  little,  yet  obtaining  even  less  than  that 
little,  and  that  sufficient  for  me?  For  to  be  content  my 
sufferings,  and  time  so  long  my  familiar,  and  thirdly,  my 
native  nobleness,  teaches  me.  But,  my  child,  if  thou  be- 
holdest  any  seat,  either  by  the  common  haunts  of  men,  or 
by  the  groves  of  the  deities,  place  me  and  seat  me  there,  that 
we  may  inquire  where,  after  all,  we  are.  For  we  are  come 
strangers,  to  learn  of  citizens,  and  perform  that  which  we  shall 
have  heard. 

Antigone.  My  woe-worn  father,  ffidipus,  there  are  toAvers, 
which  impale^  a  city,  to  judge  by  mine  eye,  at  some  distance. 

^  OTeyovciv.  Rcsifj  translates  this  orculinit,  Hermann  confincrJ,  add- 
ing, "quod  qui  ita  dictum  putant,  ut  tueri  urbem  turrcs  significentur, 
non  ita  absurd!  sunt ;  pracsertim  quum  vix  dubitari  possit,  quin  arx  Athc- 
narum  sit  intclligcnda.     Certe  -Eschylus  sic  Sept.  ad  Thcta>  803,  dixisso 


IG— 42.]  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  55 

But  this  spot  here  is  consecrated,  as  one  may  certainly  con- 
clude, all  full  with  the  bay,  the  olive,  the  vine,  while  within 
it  dense  flocks  of  winged  nightingales  are  singing  sweetly  : 
where  bend  thou  thy  limbs  upon  this  unpolished  stone,  for 
thou  hast  traveled  onward  a  long  way  for  an  old  man. 

CEd.   Seat  me,  then,  and  take  care  of  the  blind. 

Ant.  If  but  for  long  time's  sake  I  need  not  learn  this. 

GCd.   Canst  thou  nou^  instruct  me  Avhere  we  have  halted? 

Ant.  That  it  is  Athens  at  any  rate  I  know,  but  the  spot  I 
do  not. 

(li^i^.  Why,  tliis^  at  least  every  wayfarer  told  us. 

Ant.  But  shall  I  go  somewhere  and  learn  what  place  it  is? 

G^D.  Yes,  my  child  ;  that  is  to  say,  if  it  be  habitable. 

Ant.  Kay,  it  is  actually  inhabited.  But  I  think  there  is 
no  need,  for  I  see  this  man  here  close  to  us. 

GiId,  Yv'hat,  walking  hitherward  and  quick  in  motion? 

Ant.  Nay,  now  present  indeed  ;  and  Avhatever  is  seasonable 
for  thee  to  say,  speak  it,  since  here  is  the  man. 

Qi^D.  Friend,  hearing  from  this  female,  who  uses  sight 
both  on  her  own  behalf  and  mine,  that  thou  art  come  a  guide 
opportune  for  us  to  tell  us  that  about  which  we  are  uncer- 
tain— 

CoLONEAN.  Ere  nov>^  thou  question  further,  retire  from  this 
thy  resting-place ;  for  thou  occupiest  a  spot  whereon  it  is  not 
pious  to  set  foot. 

G2d.  But  what  is  the  spot  ?  to  which  of  the  gods  is  it  dedi- 
cated? 

Col.  It  is  not  to  be  touched  nor  dwelt  in  ;  for  the  awful 
goddesses  possess  it,  daughters  of  Earth  and  Darkness. 

CEd.  '^V'hose  august  name  might  I,  hearing  it,  worship  in 
prayer  ? 

Col.  The   all-seeing  Eumenidie   the  people   here   at  least 

videtur  artyet  ci  Trvpyor'"  From  the  appearance  of  the  Acropolis  it  might 
be  translated  "  crown  ;"  yet  perhaps  lleisigius  is  right,  for  Colonus  is 
north  of  Athens  ;  and  up  to  the  time  of  Theseus  the  greater  part  of  the 
city  was  built  on  the  rock  and  to  the  south  of  it,  as  proved,  says  Thucyd- 
ides,  by  the  site  of  the  most  ancient  temples  at  Athens. — Tr.  Wundcr 
follows  Wakefield's  conjecture,  crtdovcnv. — B. 

^  "  Why,  this."  Whether  we  look  to  the  general  arrangement  of  these 
short  dialogues,  or  to  the  more  important  point  of  propriety  in  the  charac- 
ters, we  shall  be  equally  convinced  that  this  peevish  rejoinder  is  rightly 
asL-igned  to  GJdlpus. 


5G  CEDIPUS  COLOXEL-.S.  [43—65. 

would  call  them :  but  other  names  arc  m  other  places  in  es- 
teem. 

CEi).  But  O  that  they  would  but  kindly  receive  their  sup- 
pliant— then  may  I  no  more  remove  from  my  seat  on  this  their 
soil 

Col.  Nay,  what  is  this  ? 

QEd.  The  watchword  of  my  destiny. 

Col.  But  I  too  lack  boldness  Avithout  the  city's  warrant  to 
dislodae  thee,  at  least  ere  I  shall  communicate  to  them  what 
I  do.i 

Q^^D.  Now,  for  the  love  of  heaven,  stranger,  disdain  me  not 
a  wanderer  such  as  this,  the  boon  I  ask  of  thee,  to  tell  me. 

Col.  Specify  it,  and  thou  shalt  not  find  thyself  repulsed  in 
scorn  by  me  at  least. 

CKd.  But  what  place  is  this,  then,  into  which  we  have  pro- 
ceeded '? 

Col.  Thou  shalt  hear  and  be  acquainted  with  the  whole 
amount  of  that  which  I  knovr.  This  region  is  all  hallowed ; 
and  the  venerable  Neptune  possesses  it  ;^  there  too  is  the  fire- 
wielding  divinity,  the  Titan  Prometheus :  but  for  the  place  on 
which  thou  steppest,  it  is  titled  tlie  brazen-paved  cau.-eway  of 
this  land,  defense  of  Athens ;  but  the  neighboring  lands  claim 
proudly  this  the  knight  Colonus  as  their  chieftain,  and  all  bear 
liis  name  in  common  being  thus  desiirnated.  Such  is  this  ac- 
count  for  thee,  stranger,  not  renowned  in  story,  but  rather  by 
custom.3 

CEd.  '\Vhy,  are  there  any  dwellers  in  these  said  regions  ? 

Col.  Ay,  surely,  even  the  bearers  of  this  deity's  name. 

^  ri  dpuv  is  Hermann's  reading,  after  Reisigius,  which  makes  the 
meaning  much  less  obvious. 

2  "its  master."  Pausanias  speaks  of  altars  in  Colonus  to  equestrian 
Minerva  and  Neptune,  and  mentions  an  altar  to  Prometheus  in  the 
Academy,  formerly  a  starting-place  for  those  who  contended  in  the  game 
Aa/j.7Ta67i6opla.  The  scholiast  says  that  there  were  brazen  mines  at  Co- 
lonus. 

^  "  not  renowned  in  story,  but  rather  among  the  neighborhood.'' 
Brunck's  idea  is  very  dilTerent,  "  non  fama  magis  quam  ipso  usu  nota," 
which,  if  it  be  adopted,  the  sentiment  may  be  referred  to  Athens  in  gen- 
eral ;  which  "//oj?/  ruiv  vi'V  uKoT^g  Kpucciov  ^c  ~dpav  tpxsTai..''  Thucyd. 
2. — Tn.  I  have  followed  the  schohast  and  Keisig.  But  since  the  stran- 
ger pointed  to  the  statue  r.f  Colonus  near  at  hand,  it  is  proDable  that  he 
also  ailudrs  to  the  presenoj  of  tbc-ir  chieftain  among  them,  jnoi-ou  must 
of  course  be  s'.jpplied  witi    rJ.vi.iq.. — B. 


G3— 93]  (EDTPUS  COLONEUS.  57 

Q^D.  Dogs  any  one  sway  them,  or  is  the  authority  in  the 
people  ? 

Col.  These  parts  ai-e  governed  by  the  king  in  the  city. 

G^D.  But  who  is  he  pre-eminent  both  in  right  and  power? 

Col.  His  name  is  Theseus,  ofi'spring  of  ^geus  his  prede- 
cessor. 

QiId.  Would  any  one  of  you  go  to  fetch  him  ? 

Col.  AVith  a  view  to  what,  to  speak  to  him,  or  induce  him 
to  come?^ 

CEd.  That  lending  a  little  aid  he  may  reap  a  great  gain. 

Col.  And  what  ad^'antage  can  there  be  at  the  hands  of  a 
sightless  being  ? 

Q^iD.  "Whatsoever  words  we  shall  speak,  we  shall  speak  them 
all  clear-sighted. 

Col.  Knowest  thou,^  stranger,  how  in  this  case  to  guard 
against  failure  ?  since  noble  art  thou,  to  another's  eye,  save  in 
thy  condition.  'J  arry  here,  even  where  thou  hast  appeared, 
until  I  shall  repair  to  the  burghers  of  this  place  here,  not  those 
in  the  city,  and  report  to  them  all  this ;  for  they  at  least  will 
determine  whether  it  be  fit  for  thee  to  remain,  or  go  thy  way 
back  aoain. 

QCi).  My  child,  has  the  stranger  quitted  us? 

Ant.  He  has  so,  wherefore  thou  ma}'st  utter  every  thing  in 
peace,  my  father,  since  I  alone  am  by. 

CEd.  Ye  reverend  powers  of  dread  aspect,  forasmuch  as  I 
have  this  day  inclined  me  to  the  seats  of  you  the  first  in  this 
country,  be  not  ungracious  to  Phoebus  and  to  me,  v/ho  spake 
to  me,  when  he  foretold  those  numerous  ills  of  mine,  of  this 
respite  in  a  long  lapse  of  time,  when  I  should  arrive  at  the 
boundary-land,  v/here  I  should  obtain  a  resting-place  and  hos- 
pitable shelter  from  the  venerable  deities,  that  I  should  here 
turn  the  goal  of  my  wearisome  existence,  dwelling  as  a  gain  to 
my  hosts,""  but  ruin  to  my  dismissers,  who  thrust  me  forth  :  but 

^  "  Frustra  sunt  conjecturs  doctorum  virorum,  quas  commcmoravit 
Elmsleius.  Nam  sana  est  veterum  librorum  scriptura,  quae  sic  est  accipi- 
enda :  wf  rrpug  tl  /xoTieip  71t,uv  y  KarapTvcuv;'''' — Herm.  This  seems 
Bcarcely  satisfactory.  I  think  the  participles  should  refer  to  Theseus  in  this 
cense  :  "wherefore  should  he  come,  what  bidding?  what  arranging?" — B. 

^  olcd'  wf.  This  is  a  similar  construction  wilh  olcO'  wf  Tzoiriaov.  Q]d. 
Tyr.  542,  on  w^hich  see  Hermann's  note. 

■"  Such  is  surely  the  simplest  way  of  taking  the  words  Kepfirj  jlfv  oIkt/- 
cavra  roig  dedeyixivotg.  lieisig  and  Wunder  are  not  happy  in  theii  defense 

C2 


58  CEDIPTJS  COLONEUS.  [94—130. 

that  signs  as  pledges  of  these  things  should  visit  me,  either 
earthquake  or  some  peal  of  thunder,  or  flash  of  Jove's  light- 
nino-.  I  am  sure  then  that  it  can  not  be  but  that  faithful 
omen  from  you  hath  brought  me  home  by  this  my  present  jour- 
ney to  this  grove ;  else  liad  I  never,  wending  on  my  way,  en- 
countered you  the  first :  I  sober,  you  averse  to  wine  ;^  nor  had 
I  seated  me  on  this  hallowed  unhewn  seat.  But  grant  me,  ye 
goddesses,  according  to  the  oracles  of  Apollo,  at  length  some 
accomplishment  and  final  close  of  life,  unless  I  seem  to  you  too 
debased  for  this,  I  perpetually  a  slave  to  hardships  the  extrem- 
est  man  can  bear.  Com.e,  ye  sweet  daughters  of  primeval 
Darkness,  come,  thou  Athens,  of  all  cities  the  most  esteemed, 
assigned  by  fame  to  Pallas  the  mightiest,  compassionate  this 
woe-begone  phantom  of  a  man  in  CEdipus ;  for  indeed  this  is 
not  my  original  frame. 

Ant.  Be  silent,  for  there  arc  novv^  wending  hither  some 
personages  advanced  in  years,  to  take  survey  of  thy  resting- 
place. 

Gi)D.  Yes,  silent  I  ■\\aH  be,  and  do  thou  guide  my  footsteps 
secretly  out  of  the  road  to  within  the  grove,  until  I  shall  have 
ascertained  from  these  Avhat  words  they  will  utter,  for  in  such 
knowledse  is  centred  wariness  of  action. 

Chorus.  Look  out,  who,  I  wonder,  was  he  ?  where  abides 
lie  ?  where  is  he,  having  hurried  from  this  place,  of  all  men, 
ay,  of  all  the  most  reckless  ?  Inquire  for  him,  spy  him  out, 
look  for  him  every  where.^  A  vagrant,  some  vagrant  is  the 
old  man,  and  not  a  native,  or  he  would  never  have  trespassed 
on  the  untrodden  plantation  of  these  invincible  virgins,  whom 
w^e  tremble  to  name,  and  pass  by  without  a  glance,  without  a 

of  the  phrase  oIksIv  KepSj] — oIkt^giv  oIkeIv  Kepc^a/Jav,  especially  as  KtpSrj 
may  be  put  for  Kepda/Jur.  Honnann  reads  oiKiaavra,  whicli  scorns 
harsh.  I  can  not  help  thinkinjr  that  ovplcavra  is  the  true  rcadinr^, 
"wafting  a  gale  of  profit."  Cf.  GEd.  Col.  695.  aAvovaav  nar'  upduv 
ovpioag.  In  .Esch.  Pcrs.  602,  I  think  ovpieiv  rvxvc  means,  "  to  waft 
a  prosperous  breeze,"  and  that  tvxtj^  is  not  to  be  taken  with  6ai./uova. 
Eurip.  Andr.  610.  a./.?.'  ov  tl  ravrri  cuv  (^povrjii  iTTOvpiaag.  In  Troch. 
8127,  we  have  KarovpKeiv  intransitive. 

^  "you  averse  to  wine."  '•  AVine  vvas  never  used  in  the  sacrifices  of- 
fered to  the  Furies.  Hence  the  Chorus,  in  enjoining  Oedipus  to  propi- 
tiate the  goddesses,  expressly  command  him,  /J7]6t  TzpoaibtptLv  fitdv,  not 
to  present  wine  " — D.\le. 

^  "  Inquire  for  him."  Hermann  reads  Trpo^-evOov,  ?.€vcct  vtv,  Trpoc- 
drpKnv  Tzavrax'/. 


131—167.]  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  59 

sound,  "without  a  word,  uttering  in  silence  the  languuge  of 
reverential  thouiiht  alone,  but  whom  now  there  is  a  tale  that 
one  has  come  in  no  wise  reverencing,  whom  I  looking  round 
the  whole  sacred  precincts  can  not  learn  where  he  can  possi- 
bly be  staying. 

QEd.  Here  am  I,  that  man ;  for  by  the  voice  I  see,  as  is 
the  by-word.  1 

Cii.  Alas !  alas !  fearful  to  see,  fearful  to  hear. 

Q^D.  Pray  you  look  not  on  me  as  lavvdess. 

Cii.  Now  Jove  protect  us!  who  can  the  old  man  be? 

CKd.  By  no  means  one  to  congratulate  on  his  fortunes  beinsc 
of  the  first  order,  ye  guardians  of  this  land.  Nay,  I  evince  it ; 
for  else  I  had  not  been  creeping  thus  by  light  of  eyes  not  mine 
own,  nor,  bulky,  been  leaning  on  the  slender.^ 

Ch.  Alas  I  alas!  and  wast  thou  blind  of  eyes  from  thy 
birth,  since  thou  art  at  least  grown  old  in  this  wretched  life, 
methinks?  But  yet,  if  I  for  my  part  can  help  it,  thou  shalt 
never  add  to  them  these  curses:  for  thou  trespassest,  thou 
trespassest ;  but  beware  thou  stray  not  into  this  silent  grassy 
grove,  where  the  limpid  basin  flows  blended  with  the  gush  of 
honeyed  draughts.  Wherefore,  all-helpless  stranger,  beware 
thou  well ;  remove  thee  away.  A  long  way  separates  us  ;^ 
dost  hear,  O  woe-begone  vranderer  ?  If  thou  wilt  offer  any 
parley  in  conversation  with  me,  having  quitted  the  prohibited 


^  Cf  ''Beaux  Stratagem,"  Act  i.  sc.  1,  "Yes,  sir,  Fm  old  Will.  Boni- 
face, pretty  well  known  upon  this  road,  as  the  saying  is.'' — B. 

^  Reisig  conjechires  here  e~L  a/iiKpag,  and  quotes  v.  750  (746-7, 
Brunck).  Hermann  paraphrases  the  passage  thus  :  "  Sum  ego  profecto 
infortunatissimus  :  aliter  enim  non  ita  alienorum  ope  oculorum  venissem, 
et  exigui  muneris  causa,  qui  magnus  atque  insignis  vir  sum,  hoc  in  portu 
constitissem."  The  contrast  CEdipus  expresses  (according  to  the  trans- 
lation) being  to  a  general  rule,  there  seems  no  impropriety  in  applying 
ajj-LKpolg,  as  it  stands,  to  Antigone.  The  allusion  to  his  and  his  daugh- 
ter's appearance  is  certainly  most  pathetic,  and  in  the  manner  of  Euripi- 
des ;  for  the  difference  between  these  poets  seems  to  have  been,  not  in 
their  knowledge  of  the  means,  but  their  choice  of  the  end.  Here,  accord- 
ingly, for  a  transitory  purpose,  to  move  the  pity  of  his  hosts,  CEdipus  al- 
ludes to  his  helpless  condition  of  body  ;  his  end  carried,  he  opens  loftier 
viev.'s,  and  speaks  to  a  loftier  impulse,  as  in  a  nobler  auditor.  Euripidets 
would  have  remained  content  with  the  first  effect. 

^  ejj^TVcL.  Hera:iann  agrees  with  the  scholiast  in  supposing  these  words 
to  indicate  a  fear  on  the  part  of  the  Chorus  lest  CEdipus  should  not  hear 
thein. 


60  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [168—201. 

precincts  for  a  spot  where  all  are  permitted,  then  speak  •  but 
before  that  refrain  thee. 

GijU.  Daughter,  to  v\'hat  o[)inion  may  one  come? 

Ant.  My  father,  we  needs  must  behave  ourselves  as  the  cit- 
izens do,  yielding  where  it  needs,  and  obeying. 

Q£d.  No\v  then  take  hold  of  me. 

Ant.  Even  now  I  touch  thee. 

CEd.  Strangers,  let  me  not  be  -wTonged  for  trusting  to  thee,^ 
in  quitting  my  station. 

Cii.  Never  fear  that  any  one  shall  ever  carry  thee  from 
these  abodes,  old  man,  against  thy  consent. 

Q^D.  Forward,  then? 

Cir.  Go  farther  on. 

CEd.  Still? 

Cn.  Lead  him,  damsel,  farther  on,  for  thou  understandest 
us. 

Ant.  Nay  follow,  follow  me  thus  with  unwary^  foot,  my  fa- 
ther, by  the  way  I  am  leading  thee. 

******* 

Cii.  Resolve  thee,^  poor  sufferer,  strange  in  a  strange  land, 
to  detest  whatever  the  city  holds  by  nature  odious,  and  what 
is  welcome  to  it  to  respect. 

Q^D.  Do  thou  now,  my  child,  lead  me,  that  we  may  at 
once,  adopting  a  pious  course,  be  partly  speakers,  partly  list- 
eners, and  not  war  with  necessity. 

Ch.  Plere,  no  farther  move  thy  foot  beyond  this  terrace  firm 
as  rock. 

CEd.  Thus? 

Cii.  Enough,  as  thou  hearest. 

Q3d.  Must  I  be  seated  here? 

Cii.  Yes,  edgeways  on  the  end  of  the  stone,  bending  short. 

Ant.  My  father,  this  is  my  duty,  see  thou  quietly  adjust  thy 
step  by  my  step — 

G^d.  Ah  me !  ah  me  ! 

Ant.  Leaning  forward  thine  aged  body  on  my  friendly 
hand. 

^  "  to  thee."     Speaking  to  the  CoryphsEUS  now,  to  the  Chorus  before. 

^  It  is  better  to  take  ujiuvpC)  ic6/.(^  for  "crcco''  with  Wunder,  than  lor 
"infirmo"  with  Brunck.  Cf.  Virg.  ^^n.  vi.  30,  "caeca  retrens  filo  vesti- 
gia."_B. 

^  So  in  Latin,  ^'  Aude,  hospes,  conteninere  opes." — B. 


203—233.}  (EDIPUS  COLONEUS.  61 

GKd.  V\''oe  is  me  for  my  grievous  calamity  ! 

Cii.  Unfortunate,  now  that  thou  yieldest,^  tell  us  who  of 
men  art  thou  ?  "who  art  thou,  who,  thus  rife  of  misery,  art  led 
about  ?     What  country  should  I  learn  by  askino;  to  be  thine  ? 

LEd.   Strangers,  I  have  no  countiy,  but  do  not — 

Cii.  Vrhat  is  this  thou  warnest  me  against,  old  man? 

Ql>d.  Do  not,  do  not,  do  not  ask  me  whom  I  am,  nor  exam- 
ine me  with  farther  question. 

Ch.  AVhat  isthis? 

CE,D.  Horrible  is  my  generation. 

Cii.   Speak  it. 

QKd.  My  child,  oh  me !  what  am  I  to  say  ? 

Cii.  Tell  as  of  what  extraction  thou  art,  O  stranger,  by  the 
father's  side. 

CEd.  Oh,  woe  is  me  I  what  will  become  of  me,  mine  o"\mi 
child  ? 

Ant.  Tell  them,  since  thou  art  indeed  come  to  the  utmost 
pass. 

Q^D.  Nay,  I  will  tell  it,  for  I  have  no  means  of  concealing  it. 

Cii.  Ye  delay  a  Ions;  while,  but  make  haste. 

QEd.  Know  ye  any  son  of  Laius? 

Cii.  o:  oi'^O!  ■' 

Q^D.  And  the  line  of  the  Labdacidas  ? 

Ch.  Great  god ! 

CEd.  The  lost  CEdipus? 

Ch.  And  art  thou  he? 

CEd.  Be  not  alarmed  at  what  I  say. 

Ch.  Alas!2 

CEd.  Ah,  \\Tetched  me  ! 

Cir.  Alas! 

G:]  D.  My  daughter,  what  in  the  world  will  presently  befall  us  ? 

Cii.   Get  ve  far  away  out  of  this  land. 

CKd.  But  how  ^^'ilt  thou  make  good  that  which  thou  prom- 
isedst  ? 

Cii.  Doomed  vengeance  visits  no  man  for  that  in  which  he 
has  been  the  first  outraged,  to  retaliate  ;  but  one  deceit  match- 
ed against  other  deceits  requites  the  feeling  of  pain,  not  pleas- 
ure.    But  do  thou,  again  an  outcast  from  these  abodes,  again 

^  Xa?MC,  V.  Hne  844. 

*  These  three  following  lines  have  been  made  into  one,  and  assio[ned  to 
the  Chorus,  by  Hermann. — B. 


62  (EUIPUS  COLONEUS.  [234—276. 

in  bauishinont  from  this  my  land,  hurry  away,  that  thou  at- 
tach no  I'arthcr  trouble  to  my  country. 

Ant.  O  strangers!  compassionate  at  heart,  since  ye  can  not 
brook  the  presence  of  this  my  blind  father,  v\'hen  ye  hear  the 
confession  of  involuntary  deeds,  yet,  I  beseech  you,  strangers, 
show  i)ity  to  wretched  me,  Avho  in  behalf  of  my  father  alone 
implore,  implore  you,  looking  in  your  eyes  with  eyes  not  sight- 
less, as  one  that  is  clearly  sprung  from  your  blood, ^  that  the 
unfortunate  may  meet  with  respect :  on  you,  as  on  a  god,  do 
hapless  we  depend ;  but  com.e  ye,  accord  the  unlooked-for  fa- 
vor, I  beseech  thee  by  all  that  from  thyself  is  dear  to  thee,  be 
it  child,  be  it  wife,  be  it  pelf,  or  deity ;  for  thou  couldst  not, 
wert  thou  to  search,  discover  the  mortal  who,  if  a  higher  pow- 
er led  him  on,  could  escape. 

Ch.  Nay,  be  sure,  child  of  CEdipus,  that  we  compassionate 
him  and  thee  equally  on  the  score  of  your  distress;  but,  trem- 
bling for  heaven's  vengeance,  we  could  not  speak  a  word  be- 
yond what  has  now  been  said  to  thee. 

Q.\.D.  What  profit  is  there,  then,  in  glor}',  or  what  in  good 
report  that  vainly  glides  away  ?  If  men,  forsooth,  report  that 
Athens  is  most  devout  to  heaven,  that  she  alone  is  capable 
of  delivering  the  oppressed  stranger,  that  she  alone  has  power 
to  aid  him,  and  yet  to  me  where  is  all  this?  ye  men  Avho, 
having  moved  me  from  these  seats,  are  then  for  driving  me 
away,  terrified  at  a  mere  name  ?  For  surely  it  is  not  at  my 
person  at  least,  nor  yet  m.y  deeds,  since,  in  good  truth,  my 
deeds  liave  been  suffered  rather  than  done,^  if  I  am  compelled 
to  speak  to  thee  of  my  mother's  and  father's  fate,  on  which 
account  ye  are  scared  at  me.  This  I  know  full  well ;  and 
yet  how  am  1  by  nature  wicked,  v/ho  suficring  retorted,  so 
that,  had  I  done  it  in  consciousness,  I  had  not  even  thus  been 
reprobate?  But  now  have  I  come  to  v/here  I  have  come  in 
ignorance,  but  by  those  from  whom  I  suffered,  they  well 
knowing  what  they  did,  was  I  doomed  to  destruction.  For 
all  v»hich  things  I  entreat  you  by  the  gods,  strangers,  as  ye 
have  raised  me  up,  even   so   preserve  me ;  and  do  not,  rev- 

^  Hermann  here  adopts  tlic  first  explanation  of  the  scholiast,  (l>c  (tv  rig 
KoivT/C  «?  6p(j~6ri]Tog  Ixovca  ru  cvyyeveg.  Rcisig  thinks  the  address  is 
made  to  the  Chorus  as  to  parents. 

^  Thus  Lear :  "  I  r.ni  a  man 

More  sinned  against  than  sinning." 


277—304.]  (EDIPUS  COLO.XEUS.  63 

erencing  the  gods,  tliereupon  make  the  gods  of  no  account, 
but  believe  that  they  look  on  the  mortal  who  is  pious,  and 
that  they  no  less  look  on  the  impious,  but  that  never  yet  has 
tliere  been  escape  of  any  man  among  men  irreligious :  with 
whose  arace^  do  thou  beware  of  obscuring'  heaven-blest 
Athens  by  truckling  to  unholy  practices.  But  as  thou  hast 
accepted  the  suppliant  under  thy  pledge,  rescue  and  preserve 
me ;  nor  looking  on  my  disfigured  head,  despise  me.  For  I 
am  come,  hallowed  and  pious,  and  bearing  advantage  to  these 
'thy  fellow-townsmen.  But  when  the  sovereign,  whoever  he 
be  that  is  your  chieftain,  shall  be  present,  then  shall  he  hear 
and  know  all ;  but  in  the  interim,  by  no  means  do  thou 
basely. 

Cii.  Much  necessity  is  there  to  be  awed  at  the  sentiments 
uttered  by  thee,  old  man ;  for  they  have  been  specified  in  no 
light  words :  but  I  am  content  that  the  princes  of  our  land 
take  cofrnizance  of  these  matters. 

QCd.  And  where,  strangers,  is  he  that  lords  this  your  coun- 
try? 

Cii.  He  resides  in  the  city  his  fathers  held  in  our  land  ;  but 
the  messenger  who  fetched.'^  m.e  also  hither  is  gone  to  bring 
him. 

GLd.  And  think  ye  that  he  will  have  any  regard  or  care  for 
the  blind,  that  he  himself  should  come  near  me  ? 

Cii.  A}',  greatly  so,  at  least  when  he  shall  hear  what  thy 
name  is. 

QCd.  But  who  is  he  that  will  tell  him  this? 

Cii.  Long  is  the  way ;  but  many  sayings  of  the  wayfarers 
are  wont  to  circulate  at  random,  which  he  hearing,  be  sure, 

^  ^vv  olc,  scil.  Oeol^,  according  to  Hermann.  Elmsley  thought  ku/^vtzte, 
used  for  Karaiaxwe. — Tr.  So  Aristoph.  Plut.  114.,  ol[iaL  ytip,  oJjuai,  civ 
6cC}  6'  dpi'/OETai.  But  Dindorf  cleverly  conjectures  Tad'  ovv  {iiporCjv 
being  repeated  from  above)  ^vvelg  cv,  which  is  received  by  A\'under. 
With  the  whole  reasoning  v.e  may  compare  Sextus  Empir.  adv.  Phys.  ix. 
p.  551,  speaking  of  Diagoras  :  ('uUKr/6eir  VnO  rcvog  i~iopK7jcavrog  Kal  jur/Sh 
h'EKa  TovTov  ncOovTog  fieOrjCuocaro  eig  to  /.eyeiv  fiy  eJvat  6c6v,  where  see 
Fabriehis.  Claudian  in  Rut.  i.  21 — "jam  non  ad  culmina  rerum  injustos 
crevisse  queror :  toliuntur  in  altura.  ut  lapsu  graviore  ruant."  Sec  also 
Blomf  .Esch.  Ag.  369,  sqq.— B. 

^  Donaldson  on  Antig.  19,  well  remarks  that  TTefnreiv  and  its  com- 
pounds of; en  mean  to  accompany  a  person,  and  thence  to  fetch  them  to 
a  place. — B. 


G4  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [305—333. 

will  come ;  for  much,  old  man,  does  thy  name  spread  among 
all,  so  that  even  if  he  be  slumbering  at  his  leisure,  hearing  of 
you  he  will  come  hitherward  in  haste. 

Q^Id.  But  prosperous  may  he  come  both  for  his  own  country 
and  for  me:  for  Avhat  good  man  is  not  his  own  friend?^ 

Ant.  O  Jove,  what  shall  I  say,  whither  turn  my  thoughts, 
my  father? 

QCd.  Kay,  what  is  it,  my  child  Antigone  ? 

AxT.  I  see  a  woman  drawing  nearer  to  us,  mounted  on  an 
^'Etnean  steed,-  Vvhile  on  her  head  a  Thessalian  cap  shielding 
her  from  the  sun  encircles  her  countenance.  What  shall  I 
say  ?  Is  it  ?  Is  it  not  ?  or  do  my  senses  wander  ?  I  both 
affirm  it,  and  deny,  and  know  not  what  to  say.  Ah  unhappy ! 
It  is  none"  else ;  with  a  bright  glance  she  hails  me  by  the  eye 
as  she  draws  near,  and  gives  proof  that  this  is  plainly  Ismene 
in  person  and  none  other. 

G^^D.   How  saidst  thou,  my  child  ? 

Ant.  That  I  behold  my  child  and  my  sister,  but  this  mo- 
ment thou  mayest  discover  her  by  her  voice. 

Ismene.  Oh  double  salutation  of  a  father  and  a  sister  to  me 
most  delightful,  how,  having  hardly  found  you,  can  I  in  the 
next  place  for  sorrow  hardly  look  upon  you ! 

CEd.  My  child,  art  thou  come  ? 

Ism.  Ah,  father,  distressful  to  look  on ! 

CEd.  My  child,  and  dost  appear  ?3 

Ism.  Ay,  and  not  without  trouble  to  me. 

CFiD.  Embrace  me,  my  daughter. 

Ism.  I  clasp  you  both  together. 

CEd.   Ah  !  .seed  of  a  common  stock! 

Ism.   O  sadly  -SATCtched  family ! 

(Ed.  Meanest  thou  of  her  and  me? 

Ism.  And  of  unfortunate  me  the  third. 

CEd.  My  child,  but  wherefore  hast  thou  come? 

Ism.  From  precaution  on  thy  account,  my  sire. 

G^D.  From  a  lon<iinG^  to  see  me? 

'  Qi]dipus  says  this  in  allusion  both  to  himself  and  to  Theseus.  Simi- 
larly the  Psahnist,  '•  As  long  as  thou  doest  good  to  thyself,  men  will 
speak  well  of  thcc."' 

^  For  the  excellence  of  the  Sicilian  horses,  see  Pindar's  Odes  to  Hicro 
of  Syracuse,  whom  he  calls  founder  of  .Etna. 

'  I  need  hardly  observe  that  rri'^^rcf  bears  a  present  signification. — 13. 


333— 3G0.]  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  Go 

Ism.  Yes,  and  for  a  message  besides,  myself  the  bearer, 
with  the  only  one  of  our  domestics  whom  I  had  faithful  to 
me. 

GilD.  But  the  young  men  thy  brethren,  where  were  they 
for  the  toil? 

Is-Ai.  They  are  where  they  are.  Dire  are  their  present 
deeds. 

CEi).  O  they  in  all  things  to  the  manners  of  Eg;y73t  likened 
in  nature  and  in  the  breeding  of  life.^  For  there  the  males 
sit  in-doors  working  at  the  loom,  while  their  consorts  always 
are  procuring  the  means  of  support  raised  out  of  doors ;  but 
they  Avhose  proper  care  it  was  to  take  this  trouble  off'  your 
hands,  my  daughters,  are  keeping  house  at  home  hke  maidens, 
while  you  in  their  room  weary  yourselves  in  relief  of  my 
miseries,  wretch  that  I  am.  One  of  you,  from  the  moment 
she  left  off"  the  nurture  of  a  child,  and  acquired  strength  of 
frame,  perpetually,  to  her  sad  fortune,  wandering  with  me, 
is  the  old  man's  guide,  many  a  time  straying  famished  and 
barefooted  through  the  wild  forest,  and  toihng,  poor  sufferer, 
through  many  a  storm  and  many  a  scorching  sun's  heat,  she 
holds  but  secondary  the  comforts  of  her  residence  at  home, 
if  her  father  can  be  maintained.  But  thou,  my  child,  hereto- 
fore hast  come  forth  Avithout  the  Thebans'  privity,  bringing 
thy  father  all  the  prophecies  which  were  divulged  touching 
this  mortal  mould,  and  stoodest  up  my  trusty  protectress  when 
I  was  being  ejected  from  my  country ;  and  now  again  what 
tidings  bringing  to  thy  father  comest  thou,  Ismene?  what 
movins:  cause  has  roused  thee  from  home  ?  For  thou  corniest 
not  empty-handed  at  least,  this  I  well  know,  nor  without  con- 
veying to  me  some  alarm. 

'  Diodorus  Siculus  (i.  27)  thinks  that  the  female  ascendency  prevalent 
in  Egypt  arose  from  a  wish  to  perpetuate  the  memory  of  Isis'  beneficent 
rei^n.  The  schoUast  on  Sophocles  attributes  the  effeminacy  of  the 
Egyptian  males  to  a  policy  of  Sesostris,  similarly  to  that  recommended  by 
Croesus  to  his  conqueror.  "Whatever  cause  produced  the  petticoat  govern- 
ment of  that  land,  it  has  been  sufficiently  atoned  for  since  by  the  degraded 
condition  of  the  women  in  Egypt  for  centuries  past.  One  might  conjec- 
ture chess  to  have  been  invented  on  the  banks  of  the  Nile  during  the  prev- 
alence of  the  ancient  manners,  but  for  the  higher  claims  of  the  Lydians 
to  inventions  of  the  sort,  who,  moreover,  if  Omphale  may  be  taken  as  a 
specimen,  w^ere  much  on  a  par  with  their  southern  neighbors  in  female 
consequence. 


66  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [361—393. 

Is.M.  The  liardsliips  I  undenvent,  my  futlier,  seeking  for 
thy  abode,  where  thou  wert  inhabiting,  I  will  pass  by  and 
omit ;  for  I  have  no  wish  twice  to  be  pained,  both  in  the 
suffering  them  and  again  anew  in  the  recital.  But  the  mis- 
chiefs which  liow  environ  thj  two  luckless  sons,  to  signify 
those  to  thee  have  I  come.  For  erewhile  their  strono-  desira 
wss  both  to  resign  the  throne  to  Creon,  and  not  to  pollute  the 
city,  when  they  reasoned  over  the  calamity  of  their  birth  of 
old,  how  it  had  fallen  on  thy  hapless  house  ;  but  now  from 
some  one  of  the  gods  and  from  their  wicked  spirit  there  har? 
arisen  between  them  trebly  wretched  an  evil  feud,  to  seize 
upon  the  sovereignty  and  kingly  sway.  And  the  younger  and 
inferior  in  time  of  birth  deprives  the  elder  born  Pohiiices^ 
of  his  throne,  and  has  expelled  him  from  his  country.  But 
he,  as  is  the  prevailing  rumor  among  us,  having  retired  in 
exile  to  the  vale  of  Argos,  is  attaching  to  him  both  a  new 
connection  and  armed  friends  confederate  ;  as  if  Ar"-os  were 
tbrthwith  either  to  surpass  the  Cadmeian  plain  in  glory,  or  to 
exalt  it  to  hea,ven.  This  is  no  sort-  of  words,  my  father,  but 
fearful  facts.  Thy  troubles,  however,  in  v.diat  v/ay  the  gods 
will  commiserate,  I  can  not  learn. 

CEi).  Why,  hadst  thou  yet  a  hope  that  the  gods  v/ould  take 
any  thought  for  me,  that  I  might  at  length  be  saved  ? 

Ism.  Yes,  that  have  I,  from  the  present  oracles  at  least,  my 
fatlier. 

(Ed.  Of  what  nature  these  ?  and  what  has  been  prophesied, 
my  child  ? 

Ism,  That  thou^  wilt  one  day  be  an  object  .of  search  to  the 
men  of  that  land  botli  in  death  and  life,  for  their  ovm  safety's 
sake. 

CEd.  But  who  could  derive  any  benefit  from  such  a  ono 
as  I? 

Ism.  'Tis  said  that  on  thee  depends  their  povrer. 

CEd.  AVhy,  then,  Avhen  I  no  longer  am,  then  it  seems  I  am 
a  made  man. 

^  Euripides,  on  the  contrary,  makes  Eteocles  the  elder  and  is  support- 
ed by  other  writers. 

^  "  sort,"  contemptuously  :   "ye  shall  be  slain  all  the  sort  of  you." 
'  "That  thou."     Hermarm  complains  here  of  a  want  of  jud'Tment  in 
fhe  poet,  in  havinir  excited  liis  hearers  to  the  expectation  of  some  nc.v 
oracle,  when  about  to  produce  nothing  more  tlian  thry  v.'crc  ah-cady  in- 
fjrmeJ  of  by  Oedipus 


394— 414.T>  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  G7 

Is3i.  Yes,  for  now  the  gods  stablish  thee,  before  now  they 
cast  thee  doAvn. 

QEd.  Yet  'tis  a  paltry  favor  to  set  up  in  age  one  who  in 
youth  has  fallen. 

Is3i.  Be  assured,  however,  that  Creon,  on  account  of  these 
things,  will  shortly  come,  and  in  no  long  time. 

CEd.  To  do  what,  my  daughter?  tell  me. 

Ism.  To  place  thee  near  the  Cadmeian  land,  that  they  may 
have  thee  in  their  power ;  but  thou  mayest  not  enter  the 
boundaries  of  the  land. 

Q^2d.  What  aid  is  there  from  me  Ivinir  at  their  cates? 

Is3i.  Thy  tomb,  if  deprived  of  just  rites,  threatens  them 
with  danger.^ 

G^D.  Even  without  a  god,  any  one  might  learn  this  at  least 
by  his  natural  sense. 

Ism.  On  account  of  tliis,  therefore,  do  they  wish  to  place 
you  near  the  land,  not  where  you  may  be  your  own  master. 

GLb.  Will  they  even  enshroud  me  in  the  dust  of  Thebes? 

Ism.  Nay,  the  blood  of  kindred  forbids  you,  O  father. 

Gi^D.  Of  me  then  sure  they  never  shall  obtain  possession. 

Ism.  This  therefore  shall  at  some  time  be  a  heavy  woe  to 
the  sons  of  Cadmus. 

CEd.  By  what  circumstance  arising,  my  child  ? 

IsM.  By  thy  wrath,-  Vvdien  they  shall  stand  at  thy  se- 
pulchre. 

QCd.  But  from  whom  hearing  what  you  pronounce,  do  you 
relate  it,  my  child  ? 

Ism.  From  men  sent  to  consult  the  gods,  returning  from  the 
Delpliic  shrine. 

(Ed.  And  has  Phoebus  declared  these  things  to  depend  upon 
me? 

^  R,ecte  6v(jTvx<^v,  quod  justis  Jionorihus  carens  signiucaro  viJetur. 
Tali  sepulturae  ne  traderetur  CEdipus,  mutuebant  Thebani  ab  oraculo 
moniti,  nee  tamen  eum  in  patria  sepelire  volebant.  Hoc  coiislat  c  v.  407. 
Ehnslpv. — Tr.  Oil  the  misery  of  sepulture  in  a  foreign  land,  of.  .Esch. 
Ch.  913.     Virg.  ^En.  i.  94,  sqq.— B. 

2  An  allusion  is  made  to  the  invasion  of  Attica  by  the  Thebans  ;  and 
victory  is  of  course  promised  to  the  Athenians.  The  whole  of  this  play, 
indeed,  abounds  with  instances  of  flattery  and  similar  presages  of  triumph. 
The  poet  knew  his  countrymen  :  no  people  in  the  world  were  ever  more 
easily  captivated  with  praise,  when  it  was  bestowed  upon  them  univer- 
sally ;   or  more  credulous  of  caluniuy,  when  it  attached  to  an  individual. 


68  (EDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [415—444 

Ism.  So  tliey  say,  who  have  come  to  the  plain  of  Thcbe.^ 

GCd.  AVliieh  then  of  my  sons  heard  this? 

Ism.  Both  ahke,  indeed ;  and  well  do  they  fully  know  it. 

Ql)d.  And  yet  did  these  basest  wretches,  when  they  heard 
this,  place  the  kingly  power  before  the  regret  of  me  ? 

Ism.  I  grieve  to  liear  the  intelligence ;  but  still  I  liear  it. 

Qi^D.  But  may  the  gods  never  quench  to  them  this  fated 
strife ;-  and  with  me  may  the  issue  rest  concerning  this  com- 
bat in  which  they  now  engage,  and  uplift  the  spear  ;  so  should 
neither  he  who  now  holds  the  sceptre  and  throne  remain, 
nor  he  who  has  gone  forth  ever  return  airain  to  the  citv. 
They,  at  least,  neither  retained  nor  defended  me,  their  pa- 
rent, thus  with  loss  of  honors  driven  out  of  the  country ; 
but  expelled  I  was  sent  away  by  them,  and  was  proclaimed 
forth  an  exile.  You  may  say  that  the  city  then  reasonably 
vouchsafed  this  gift  to  my  wishes.  No,  in  truth ;  since  on 
that  very  day,  when  my  spirit  boiled,  and  it  was  sweetest  to 
me  to  die,  and  to  be  stoned  with  stones,  no  one  appeared  to 
gratify  this  desire ;  but  when,  after  a  lapse  of  time,  all  my 
griefs  were  now  mellowed,  and  I  had  learned  that  my  anger 
had  rushed  forth  too  severe  an  avenger  of  my  former  sins, 
then  at  length,  after  long  stay,  the  state  indeed  drove  me  by 
force  from  the  land ;  but  they,  offspring  of  a  father,  and  able 
to  aid  a  father,  were  unwilling  to  do  it ;  and  for  want  of  a 
small  word,^  I  wandered  abroad  an  exile  and  a  bengar.     Bu*. 

^  When  the  noun  is  in  the  sintjular,  it  must  be  understood  as  meanin2 
the  nymph  Thebe,  and  is  thus  most  poetically  and  correctly  rendered. 

^  The  curses  which  CEdipus  imprecates  on  his  sons  throughout  this 
play  are  bitter  and  strong,  and,  perhaps  we  might  add,  unnatural.  He  is 
what  Dr.  Johnson  w^ould  have  called  "  a  good  hater  ;"  stern  and  im- 
placable, he  seldom  or  never  forgets  his  wrongs,  and  seems  to  feel,  like 
Lear, 

"  How  sharper  tlian  a  serpent's  tooth  it  is 
To  have  a  thankless  child." 

The  cause  of  this  may  perhaps  be  found  in  the  ingratitude  with  which 
Sophocles  was  treated  by  his  own  children.  ^V'e  are  told  by  Cicero  that 
this  very  play  was  written  at  the  time  that  his  sons  presented  a  petition 
to  court  to  have  him  removed  from  the  manajjement  of  his  own  ailairs  on 
account  of  idiocy.  The  poet's  whole  defense  consisted  in  readin""-  this 
splendid  production  ;  and  he  was  not  only  acquitted  of  the  charge,  but 
applauded  to  the  skies.  Happy  the  poet  that  lived  among  such  a  people, 
and  happy  the  people  that  could  boast  of  such  a  poet ! 

'  That  is,  for  want  of  a  small  word  spoken  by  his  sons  in  hia  defense 


445-_474.]  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  69 

fi'oui  these  two,  who  arc  virgins,  as  far  as  their  nature  permits 
tiieiii,  1  receive  both  tiie  sustenance  ot'Ufe,  and  security  on  the 
earth,  and  the  offices  of  kindred.  Tiiose,  in  preference  to  a 
father,  choose  to  sway  thrones  and  sceptres,  and  to  lord  it  o'er 
the  land  ;  but  neither  at  all  shall  they  gain  me  as  an  ally,  nor 
shall  ever  any  enjoyment  of  tiie  empire  of  Cadmus  come  to 
them.  This  I  know,  both  hearing  the  oracles  from  this  girl, 
and  also  reflecting  upon  the  ancient  predictions,  which  Phoe- 
bus erst  accomplished  unto  me  in  mine  own  person. ^  There- 
fore, let  them  botli  send  Creon  to  search  me  out,  and  whoso- 
ever else  is  powerful  in  the  state  ;  for  if  you,  O  strangers,  are 
"willino-  to  defend  me,  alonn;  ^^'itll  these  awfnl  fjoddesses,  who 
preside  o'er  your  people,  you  will  procure  a  mighty  savior  to 
this  city,  and  troubles  to  my  enemies. 

Cii.  Thou  art  indeed  worthy,  CEdipus,  of  pity,  both  your- 
self and  these  thy  daughters  ;  but  since  you  introduce  yourself 
in  these  w^ords  as  the  savior  of  this  land,  I  wish  to  recommend 
to  you  what  is  expedient. 

CEd.  O  dearest,  interpret  it  to  me,  as  now  about  to  perform 
eveiy  tiling. 

Cii.  Institute  now  an  expiation  to  those  divinities  to  whom 
you  first  came,  and  whose'^  plain  you  have  trodden. 

G^D.  In  what  modes  ?     O  strangers,  instruct  me. 

Cii.  First  bring  sacred  libations  from  the  ever-flowing  fount, 
touching  them  with  holy  hands. 

CEd.  And  when  I  have  taken  the  pure  stream  ? 

Ch.  There  are  cups,  work  of  a  skillful  artificer,  the  heads 
and  double  handles  of  which  do  thou  crown. 

CEd.  With  boughs  or  threads,  or  in  Avhat  way  ? 

In  this  interpretation  I  follow  Brunck.  Others  take  iTrog  in  the  meaning 
it  soaietimes  bears  of  rrpuyfia,  res,  and  translate  it  "  on  account  of  a 
small  crime."  Granting  the  sins  of  CEdipus  to  have  beeen  involuntary, 
it  v.'ould  scarcely,  however,  be  decent  to  make  him  talk  of  patricide  and 
incest  as  such  triflincj  matters. 

^  Whatever  be  the  ditliculties  of  this  difncult  passage,  the  translator  to- 
tally mistook  '/jVVGEV  when  he  rendered  it  "communicated."  Wunder 
objects  to  the  common  reading,  and  adopts  the  conjecture  of  Heath,  re 
Ta^  tjiov.  Hermann  construes  the  words  thus  :  rd  re  ufiot  ^oljSog  t^ 
ifiov  Tzore  yv.  rrcA.  "  id  ego  scio  et  hujus  audiens  oracula,  quum  reputo,  et 
per  me  quas  Phoebus  olim  antiquas  dictiones  effectum  dedit,"  which,  in  ab- 
sence of  something  better.  I  have  followed.  Perhaps,  however,  e[j.ov  is  re- 
peated from  the  second  line  below,  and  has  displaced  the  right  word. — B. 

-  But  see  Wunder. — B. 


70  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [475—485. 

Cii.  ^Vrcatliing  thcni  Avilh  the  iiew-boni  avooI  of  a  young 
lamb. 

CEd,  Y\'ell ;  but  as  to  what  remains,  -where  is  it  fitting  that 
I  should  accomplish  it  ? 

Cii.  To  pour  the  libations,  turning  to  the  rising  m.om.^ 

QCd.   Shall  I  pour  them  from  these  urns  you  speak  of? 

Cii.  Three  streams,  at  least ;  but  the  last  entire. 

Q^D.  With  what,  having  filled  this,  shall  I  oflter  it?  Teach 
me  also  this. 

Cii.   With  water  and  with  honey.      Add  no  v,ine. 

Gl.d.  And  when  the  earth  with  its  dark  verdure  shall  have 
drunk  these  ? 

Cii.  Placing  in  it  thrice  nine  boughs  of  olive,  with  both, 
hands,  utter  over  them  these  prayers. 

QEd.  These  I  wish  to  hear,  for  they  are  of  the  greatest  con- 
sequence. 

^  The  practice  of  turning  to  the  sun  on  solemn  occasions,  or  even  ad- 
dressing him  as  he  rose,  was  a  common  superstition  among  the  ancients. 
It  is  not  exactly  known  wliat  was  the  purport  of  this  form,  but  it  prob- 
ably originated  in  the  religious  grandeur  of  the  scene,  and  the  emotions 
excited  in  the  breast  of  the  votary  by  the  visible  presence  of  the  god. 
Clytemnestra,  in  the  Elcclra,  goes  forth  to  tell  her  alarming  dream  to  the 
rising  sun  : 

ToLavra  rov  irapovrv^,  r/vcx'  'HAiw 
deiKvvGC  Tovvap,  i:K?.vov  i^j]jov/j.evov. 

Cratinus  also  mentions  it  as  a  religious  ceremony : 

"Aye  di)  irpug  eo)  TrpuTov  uttuvtuv  tarco, 
Kal  AajiiiuvE  X^P^'-  2;i;Zx'oy  [1£yu7.i]v. 

And  in  the  Necyomantia  of  Lucian,  we  are  told  by  Menippus  that,  pre- 
paratory to  his  descent  to  Hades,  Mithrobarzanes  the  Chaldean  conduct- 
ed him  at  daybreak  to  the  banks  of  the  Euphrates,  Trpyf  dvaTt}i7\,ovTa  rov 
ri7uov,  pyclv  riva  jianpuv  irciMyuv. — Tr.  So  after  a  dream  in  Statius, 
Thcb.  ix.  GOl, 

"Ergo,  ut  inane  nefas  merso  trr  crive  piavit, 

Verbaque  soUicitas  matrum  solantia  curas, 

Addidit,  arniataj  ruit  ad  delubra  Dianae. 

Ivorc  sub  Eoo — " 

So  in  Xcnoph.  Cyrop.  vii.  s.  3,  Cyrus  orders  the  camps  to  be  pitched, 
irpug  £<J  jS'/itTTOvaav .  Achilles  Tat.  Isag.  Aral.  (^  i.  ^c(poi;/.7/g  (5e  Eig 
'Arpta  T7/V  tvpeoiv  uva(^tpet,  ?Jjo)V  •  Tziig  TrpogKVvn  t't  tIv  orptfovra 
kvk'Aov  t/?uov.  Hence  the  sun  is  frequently  invoked  as  a  witness,  Apul. 
Mctam.  i.  p.  3,  and  the  apparition  of  the  sun  in  a  dream  v.  as  a  prosperous 
omen,  Libanius,  t.  ii.  Orat.  xi.  p.  344.  Thus  also  Ptolemy  Philopater, 
after  a  victory,  turned  the  eleph.ants  to  the  smi.  {hoi  ihcv  mifflit  ciTcr 
their  supposed  adoration.     ^Elian.  Hist.  An.  vii.  44. — B 


488—511]  ■      CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  71 

Cii.  As  we  c;ill  llicm  the  benevolent  goddesses,  that  they 
may  thus  with  benevolent  hearts  receive  their  suppliant  in 
salet}-,  do  you  yourself  implore  ;  or,  if  there  is  any  other  in 
your  phice,  speaking  inaudible  V\'ords,  nor  making  the  voice 
heard  afar.  Tlien  slow  depart,  without  turning  back.  "When 
you  have  done  these  things,  I  with  confidence  would  stand 
l)}^  you ;  but  otherwise,  O  stranger,  I  should  fear  concerning 
you. 

CEd.  O  my  daughters,  do  you  hear  these  stranger-dwellers 
in  this  land  ? 

A>:t.  Wc  have  heard  ;  and  do  you  command  what  is  fitting 
to  do. 

CEd.  By  me  the  way  may  not  be  trodden ;  for  I  am  defi- 
cient in  the  want  of  power  and  in  the  want  of  sight — two  evils : 
but  let  one  of  you,  going,  perform  these  things ;  for  I  am  of 
opinion  that  one  soul,  if  it  be  present  with  kindly  feeling,  will 
suffice  in  place  often  thousand  in  working  this  expiation.  But 
Avith  speed  do  ye  something ;  only  leave  not  me  alone,  for  my 
body  would  not  be  able  to  craAvl  on  unassisted,  nor  at  least 
without  a  guide. 

Is?.i.  I  go  to  perform  it ;  but  the  place  where  I  shall  fir.  1  the 
requisites,  this  I  wish  to  learn. 

Cii.  In  that  part  of  this  grove,  O  stranger  maid  ;  and  if  you 
have  need  of  any  thing,  there  is  a  dweller  in  the  place  who  will 
inform  vou. 

Is:.i.  I  will  then,  if  you  please,  go  for  this  purpose ;  but 
do  thou,  Antigone,  here  watch  cur  father  ;  for  if  any  one 
toil  for  a  parent,  it  is  not  fitting  to  bear  remembrance  of  the 
toiili 

Cii.  It  is  dreadful  indeed,  O  stranger,  again  to  awaken  a 
grief  that  has  already  long  slumbered,  yet  still  I  long  to  in- 

1^ 


C'mre." 


^  This  v/cre  a  fine  sentiment  if  it  came  from  any  lips  but  those  of  the 
selfish  and  unamiable  Israene.  She  can  r.ct  do  the  most  trifling  piece  of 
service  to  her  father  without  makino-  a  fuss  about  it,  and  taking  credit  to 
herself  for  her  exertions. 

"  If  the  Chorus  had  been  possessed  of  a  common  share  of  delicacy  or 
politeness,  they  v/ould  have  restrained  their  longings,  especially  as  they 
seem  already  to  have  been  sufllcicntiy  acquainted  wich  the  revolting  sub- 
ject. There  was  an  awkward  pause,  however,  occasioned  by  the  departure 
cf  Ismer.c  ;  and  tlicy  thour-ht,  perhaps,  this  conversation  more  dir;i:if:cd 
than  a  diccoursc  on  the  state  cf  the  weather  or  any  other  vulgar  topic. 


72  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [512— 53G. 

(Ed.  What  is  this? 

Cii.  Concerning  that  sorro^v  which  has  arisen,  wretched  and 
extricablc,  in  which  you  are  situated. 

QOd.  Do  not,  kind  friend,^  by  thine  hospitaUty,  lay  open  ab- 
horred deeds. 

Cji.  I  wish,  stranger,  to  hear  correctly  that  report  which  has 
spread  far,  and  nowhere  yet  ceased. 

ODd.  AVoe  is  me ! 

Cii.  Acquiesce,  I  beseech  thee. 

Gi^D.  Alas !  alas ! 

Cii.  Obey  nie,  and  I  also  [will  obey  you]  as  far  as  you  re- 
quire. 

CEd.  I  have  endured,  O  strangers,  the  worst  of  ills;  I  have 
endured  them  unwillingly,  heaven  knows  ;  and  of  these  nought 
was  of  my  own  choice.'-^ 

Cii.  But  to  what  are  they  to  be  ascribed  ? 

QCd.  The  state  bound  me,  all  ignorant,  in  an  evil  union,  in 
the  accursed  bane  of  Avedlock. 

Cii.  Didst  thou  with  thy  mother,  as  I  hear,  fill  a  bed  that 
is  horrible  to  name  ? 

CBd.  Oh  me !  these  things,  stranger,  are  death  to  hear  ;  but 
these  two  from  me — 

Cii.  Plow  sayest  thou  ? 

GiId.   Daugliters,  yet  twin  curses — ^ 

Cii.  O  Jove ! 

CEi).  Sprung  from  the  throes  of  a  common  mother. 

Cii.  And  are  they  then  thy  daughters  ? 

CEd.  And  also  their  father's  sisters,  of  one  blood. 

Cii.  Woe! 


^  TTt-ov  is  the  elegant  emendation  of  Bothe,  approved  by  Dind.  and 
Wunder. — B. 

^  On  the  metrical  and  grammatical  corruptions  of  these  verses,  see 
AVunder. — B. 

^  Vulgo  Traldec  6vo  (V  urac.  Id  Heathius  vcrti  jussit,  filii  vcro  duo 
nox(Z.  Quern  Elmsleius  miratur  non  vidisse  filias  Traldag,  filios  autem 
Lira  ab  Q^dipo  nominari.  Ego  utrun^squc  miror.  Nihil  cnim  istis  inter- 
pretalionibus  lingi  invenustius  potest.  FiUorum  nuUa  hie  mentio.  Ha:, 
inquit,  ex  mc  natce  sunt  /dice  quidcm  ducc,  scd  ducB  noxce.  Nempe  ct  ipsE3 
labcm  originis  gcrunt,  et  patri,  qui  gcnuit,  opprobria  sunt.  Ita  haec  etiam 
Brunckium  intcllcxisse  ])Uto.  llau^e  recte  dedit  Elmsleius,  pariterque, 
quod  nonnulli  libri  habcnt,  ura. — Hermann. 


637-553. J  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  73 

Q^D.  ^Voe  indeed!  returns  of  ills  unnumbered!^  I  have 
su acred  tliinfjs  to  be  borne  without  oblivion. 

Cii.  Thou  hast  done. 

O^D.  I  have  not  done. 

Cii.  How,  pray? 

Q^D.  I  received  a  ^dft,  which,  would  that  I,  wretched,  had 
never  merited  to  win  from  the  state. 

Cii.  Unhappy  man ;  what  then  ?  thou  didst  commit  the 
murder. 

Q^D.  What  is  this?  and  Avhat  dost  thou  wish  to  learn? 

Cii.  Of  a  father? 

Q^D.  Alas  !  thou  hast  inflicted  sickening  giief  on  grief. 

Cii.  Thou  didst  slay. 

CEd.  I  slew,  but  I  have — 

Cii.   AVhat? 

CEd.  Somewhat  to  justify  me. 

Cii.  How? 

OiiD.  I  v.'ill  tell ;  for  I  both  slew  and  destroyed  unwittingly, 
and  innocent  by  law,  and  ignorant,  I  did  the  deed. 

Ch.  But  hither  comes  the  king,  tlie  son  of  .^Igeus,  The- 
seus, according  to  }-our  request,  for  the  things  for  which  he 
was  sent. 2 

Theseus.-^  Loarnin2;  from  manv,  both  in  former  time,  the 
bloody  destruction  of  your  eyes,  have  I  recognized  you,  O  son 
of  Laius ;  and  nov/  on  my  vray  hith-cr  hearing  of  you,  I  the 
more  fully  know  you  ;  for  both  your  garb  and  your  Avretched 
head  show  us  who  you  are :  and  pitying  you,  unhappy  G{ldi- 
pus,  I  wish  to  ask  you,  what  supplication  having  to  me  or  to 

^  'Eiriarpopat  KaKuv,  vortices  maloriim. — Musgr.  Scholiastes  avva- 
OpoloEig.  Winsemius  aimuli,  Brunckius  rcciprocationes,  Reisigius  vicis- 
sitiidines.  Tain  multas  signiticationes  habct  eTtiarpocp?},  quarum  vix  ulla 
ab  hoc  loco  prorsus  aliena  est,  ut  optimam  eligere  difficillimura  sit. 
Ehrisley. — Tr.     I  follow  Liddell.     See  Lex.  Gr.  emarpocpr'j. — B. 

-  This  is  according  to  Dindorf  s  emendation  c<p'  ugtu/i]  for  uTrearuAr]. 
Ke  aptly  compares  Eurip.  Bacch.  454  :  ed'  oTrep  elg  Q7j(iag  Trdpec.  The 
sense  is,  he  is  here  according  to  ^our  request,  in  order  to  do  that  for 
which  his  presence  vras  required. — B. 

•^  The  character  of  Theseus  is  represented  in  a  way  that  must  have  been 
highly  agreeable  to  the  descendants  of  the  people  he  ruled.  He  is  full 
of  the  most  dignified  and  moral  centiments,  and  displaj^s  l;is  generosity 
and  pity  in  a  very  interesting  manner.  It  might  appear  hypercritical  to 
mention  our  only  objection,  that  he  is,  perhaps,  rather  stilf,  and  not  suffi- 
ciently spirited  and  ticry  for  the  boldest  hero  of  chivalrous  antiquity. 


74  CEDIPUS  COLOXEUS.  [559—587. 

the  state,  liave  you  come,  both  you  yourself,  and  she,  the  ha[>- 
less  maiden  by  your  side  i  Inibrm  me ;  it  would  be  a  dread- 
ful task  you  must  mention,  from  v.diic'h  I  would  shrink ;  since 
I  myself  at  least  know  how  a  stranger,  like  you,  I  was  reared 
abroad,  and  how  in  man's  estate  I  struiriiled  with  the  neatest 
number  of  dangers  in  my  own  person,  in  the  land  of  strangers. 
From  no  one,  therefore,  who  was  a  stranger,  as  you  are  now, 
would  I  turn  away,  so  as  not  to  assist  in  saving  him  ;^  for  I 
liave  known  that  I  am  a  man,  and  that  to  me  there  is  no  more 
share  in  to-morrow's  day  than  to  you, 

QLd.  Theseus,  your  generous  spirit  has  displayed  itself  in  a 
few  words,  so  as  to  require  me  to  say  little ;  for  you  have  de- 
claimed who  I  am,  and  from  what  father  sprung,  and  from  what 
land  I  came ;  so  that  nothing  more  remains  to  me  than  to  say 
what  I  seek,  and  the  tale  is  sped. 

Tii.  This  very  thing  now  teach  me,  in  order  that  I  may 
fully  learn  it. 

QCd.  I  come  to  bestovv^  on  you,  as  a  gift,  this  my  wa-etched 
body,  not  goodly  to  the  sight ;  but  the  advantages  to  be  de- 
rived from  it  are  of  greater  consequence  than  a  fair  form.^ 

Th.  And  what  good  do  you,  coming,  claim  to  bring? 

(Ed.  In  time  you  may  learn  it,  not  at  ail  at  present. 

Tii.  V\liy,  in  what  time  will  your  gift  be  made  manifest  ? 

GiId.  When  I  die,  and  you  shall  become  my  burier. 

Tii.  You  ask  the  last  offices  of  life ;  but  the  things  inter- 
mediate you  have  either  forgotten  or  hold  in  no  account. 

Qi)D.  For  there  these  are  concentrated  to  me.^ 

Tii.  But  in  a  trifle  you  ask  this  favor  of  me. 

CBd.  Look  to  it,  however :  this  contest  is  not  trifling ;  no, 
by  no  means. 

^  Virgil  had  this  passage  in  view  in  his  speech  of  Dido  to  ^Eneas  : 

"  Me  quoquc  per  niultos  similis  fortuna  labores 
Jactatam,  hac  demum  voluit  consistere  terra. 
Non  ignara  mail,  njiseris  succurrcre  disco." 

'  King  Henry  the  Eighth,  Act  iv.  sc.  2, 

"  O  Either  abbot, 
An  old  man,  broken  with  the  storms  of  state, 
Is  come  to  lay  his  weary  bones  among  ye  ; 
Give  him  a  little  earth  for  charity  !"' — 1^. 

^  "  In  hoc  enim  uno  (/.  c,  si  meam  scpulturain  curaveris),  reliqua  ilia 
continentur.'' — Musgravc. 


588—615]  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  75 

Tir.  Whether  do  you  speak  of  the  affairs  of  your  chikU'en, 
or  of  me  ? 

CEd.   They  avguM  compel  me  to  repair  thither. 

Tii.  But  if  they  at  least  wish  it,  it  is  not  creditable  to  you 
to  fly. 

CEd,  But  they,  Avhen  I  myself  wished  [to  remain],  did  not 
permit  me. 

Tii.  O  foolish  man,  anger  in  misfortune  is  not  good. 

CEi>.  When  you  have  heard  me,  school  me ;  but  at  present 
bear  with  me. 

Til.  Instruct  me,  for  Avitliout  judgment  it  does  not  befit  me 
to  speak. 

(-Ed.  I  have  suffered,  O  Theseus,  dreadful  ills  on  ills. 

Tii.  Will  you  speak  of  the  ancient  calamity  of  your  race  ? 

(Ed.  No,  in  truth,  since  every  one  of  the  Greeks  at  least 
talks  of  this. 

Til.  For  with  what  ill  beyond  the  lot  of  man  are  you  af> 
flicted  1 

(Ed.  Thus  it  is  v^ith  me  :  I  was  driven  from  my  land  by 
my  own  seed  ;  and  it  is  never  permitted  to  me,  as  being  the 
slayer  of  a  father,  to  return  again. 

Til.  Plow,  in  truth,  should  they  send  for  you,  so  as  to  live 
anart  ?  ^ 

CEd.   The  words  of  heaven  compel  them. 

Tii.   Dreading  wliat  suffering  from  oracles? 

(Ed.  That  it  is  fated  that  they  should  fall  by  the  stroke  in 
this  land.^ 

Tii.  And  how  should  my  interest  and  theirs  becom.e  hostile  ? 

Q'Id.  O  dearest  son  of  yEgeus,  to  the  gods  alone  old  age  be- 
longs not,  nor  indeed  ever  to  die  ;  but  every  thing  else  does 
all-powerful  time  confound.  The  vigor  of  the  earth  indeed 
decays,  and  the  vigor  of  the  body  decays  ;  faith  dies,  and  false- 
hood springs  up ;  and  the  same  gale  hath  never  at  all  blown, 
neither  to  friends  among  men,  nor  to  state  toward  state.  For 
to  some  indeed  already,  and  to  others  in  after  time,  the  things 
that  are  sweet  become  bitter,  and  again  friendly.     And  nov/ 

1  Miratur  Theseus,  qiiomocio  rovocent  ffidipum  Thebaivl  ita,  ut  iile  ta- 
nipii  propter  parricidiuni  non  ingrcdiatur  fines  ecrum. — Hermann. 

^  GEuipus,  more  than  once  in  this  play,  i.'3  not  quite  correct  as  to  the 
pLicc  where  he  denounces  the  fall  of  his  sons  ;  but  poets  must  be  allowed 
siiiie  license,  crA  prophets  some  mystery. 


76  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [61G— G47. 

if  every  tiling  is  prosperously  tranquil  to  Thebes  with  you, 
infinite  time  will,  in  his  course,  beget  an  infinite  number  of 
(lays  and  nights,  in  Avhich,  from  an  insignificant  cause,  they 
will  dissolve  with  the  spear  tlieir  present  harmony  of  plighted 
right  hands  in  that  place  wherci  ^^^y  sleeping  and  ensepul- 
chred  corpse,  long  cold,  shall  drink  their  warm  blood,  if  Jove 
be  still  Jove,  and  Phcebus  son  of  Jove  be  true.  But  as  it  is 
not  pleasant  to  utter  words  that  should  be  undisturbed, ^  per- 
mit me  to  go  on  in  the  way  I  have  begun,  only  preserving  your 
own  faith,  and  you  sliall  never  say  that  you  received  Q^dipus 
an  unprofitable  inhabitant  of  these  places  here,  if  the  gods  do 
not  deceive  me. 

Cii.  O  king,  even  before  hath  this  man  shown  himself  as 
about  to  consummate  these,  and  such  as  these  promises  to  this 
land. 

Tii.  Who,  in  truth,  would  reject  the  kindliness  of  a  man 
like  this,  to  whom,  in  the  first  place,  there  is  ever  with  us  the 
common  altar  of  our  friendship  of  the  spear?  And  next  com- 
ing a  suppliant  of  the  goddesses,  he  pays  no  small  tribute  to 
this  land  and  to  me  ;  Avhich  things  revering,  I  will  never  cast 
away  the  favor  of  this  man  ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  will  give 
him  a  seat  in  the  land.  But  if  it  is  agreeable  to  the  stranger 
to  remain  here,  I  will  appoint  thee  to  Avatch  him  ;3  or  if  it  h 
agreeable  to  go  along  with  me,  I  will  grant  you,  O  Gildipus,  de- 
ciding on  one  of  these,  to  avail  yourself  of  it ;  for  in  that  way 
I  will  coincide  with  you. 

GiId.  O  Jove,  mayest  thou  bestoAA^  thy  blessings  on  such  men 
as  these ! 

Tii.  "What  then  do  you  wish?  to  go  to  my  palace? 

Qi.1).  [I  would]  if  at  least  it  were  lawful  to  me  ;  but  tliis 
here  is  the  spot — 

Tn.  In  which  you  will  do  what?    for  I  will  not   oppose 

you. 

G^D.  In  which  I  will  conquer  those  who  cast  mc  out. 
Til.  You  would  boast  a  great  gift  of  your  residence  here. 

^  Heath,  Ehiislc}-,  and  Hermann  translate  Iva  in  co  loco  ubi.  Schsefer 
alone  considers  it  as  denoting  time,  and  not  place. 

^  TaKtvrjT'  Itzt]  h  taken  hy  some  in  the  way  I  have  given  it,  as  words 
of  awful  sanctity  ;  by  others,  as  meaning  the  lixcd  and  unalterable  or- 
acles. 

^  Addrcssuig  this  injuncliou  to  the  Chorus. 


648— G73.J  GEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  77 

Q^D.  If,  while  I  accomplish  it,  there  remain  o  you  at  least 
those  things  you  promise. 

Tn.  Be  confident  as  to  my  part,  at  least  I  will  never  be- 
tray you. 

GhD,  I  will  not  indeed  pledge  you,  like  a  wicked  man,  by  an 

oath. 

Tii.  You  would,  gain  nothing  fiu^ther  at  least  than  by  my 
word. 

Q^D.  How  then  will  you  act  ? 

Tii.  Of  what  does  the  fear  principally  possess  you  ? 

Q{1d.  Men  will  come. 

Tii.  But  to  these  it  will  be  a  care. 

CEd.  Take  heed  leaving  me. 

"i'li.  Do  not  teach  me  what  it  befits  me  to  do. 

(Ed.  There  is  need  to  one  who  fears. 

Tii.  My  heart  does  not  fear. 

(Ed.  You  know  not  the  threats. 

Tii.  I  know  that  no  man  shall  carry  you  hence  against  my 
will.  Many  threats  menace  many  vain  words  in  their  rage, 
but  when  the  mind  returns  to  itself,  the  threats  are  vanished. 
And  to  them,  even  though  there  has  been  courage  given  to  say 
terrible  things  about  taking  you  away,  I  know  that  the  sea^ 
hitlier  will  appear  long,  and  not  to  be  sailed.  I  therefore  bid 
you  be  confident,  even  without  my  care,  if  Phoebus  conducted 
you  ;  and  still,  though  I  be  not  present,  I  know  that  my  name 
will  protect  you  from  suffering  ill. 

Chorus.  Thou  hast  come,  O  stranger,  to  the  seats  of  this 
land,"^  renowned  for  the  steed ;  to  seats  the  fairest  on  earth, 
the  chalky  Colonus  ;^  where  the  vocal  nightingale,  chief 
abounding,  trills  her  plaintive  note  in  the  green  dells,  tenant- 

'  i.  e.,  the  attempt  will  appear  a  difHcult  one.  Such  proverbs  and 
phrases  are  constantly  used  when  great  extent  or  difficulty  is  spoken  of. 
— B. 

2  I  have  endeavored  to  avoid  the  unpleasant  pleonasm  Vvhich  deforms 
the  opening  of  this  beautiful  chorus.  I  must,  however,  inform  my  read- 
ers that  it  were  perhaps  more  correctly  rendered,  ''  Thou  hast  come,  O 
stranger,  to  the  best  seats  of  the  land  of  this  earth."  Elmsley  alone,  of 
the  editors  of  this  play,  has  sanctioned  the  construction  adopted  above. 

^  This  is  often  translated,  by  way  of  being  gay,  "  the  silvery  Colonus." 
Bi^-.siJos  that  the  epithet  is  rather  unmeaning,  it  is  very  bad  taste  to  tako 
any  iiherties  which  violate  the  locaUty  of  the  scene,  and  destroy  the  nat- 
ural picture  to  the  eye. 


78  CEDIPUS  COLOXEUS.  [G71— 713. 

ing  the  diirk-hucd  ivy  and  tlic  leafy  gi'ove  of  the  god,  un- 
trodden, teeiiiing  v/ith  Iriiit^^,  impervious  to  the  sun,^  and 
unshaken  by  the  vv^inds  of  every  storm  ;  Avhere  Bacchus  the 
reveler  ever  roams  attending  his  divine  nurses.^  And  ever 
day  by  day  the  narcissus,  with  its  beauteous  clusters,  bursts 
into  bloom  by  heaven's  dew,  the  ancient  coronet  of"  the 
mighty  goddesses,  and  the  saffron  with  golden  ray;  nor  do 
the  sleepless  founts^  of  Cephisus  that  wander  through  the 
fields  fail,  but  ever  each  day  it  rushes  o'er  the  plains  with  its 
limpid  v/ave,  fertilizing  the  bosom  of  the  earth  ;  nor  have  the 
choirs  of  the  muses  loathed  this  clime ;  nor  ^^enus,  too,  of 
the  golden  reign.  And  there  is  a  tree  such  as  I  hear  not  to 
have  ever  sprung  in  the  land  of  Asia,  nor  in  the  mighty 
Doric  island  of  Pelops,  a  tree  unplanted  by  hand,  of  sponta- 
neous grovv^th,  terror  of  the  hostile  spear,^  which  flourishes 
chiefly  in  this  region,  the  leaf  of  the  pale  gray  olive  that 
nourishes  our  young.  This  shall  neither  any  one  in  youth^ 
nor  in  old  age,  marking  for  destruction,  and  having  laid  it 
waste  with  his  hand,  brins;  to  nouaht ;  for  the  eye  that  never 
closes  of  Morian^  Jove  regards  it,  and  the  blue-eyed  Minerva. 
And  I  have  otlier  praise  for  this  mother-city  to  tell,  the 
noblest  gift  of  the  mighty  divinity,  the  highest  vaunt,  that 
she  is  the  great  of  chivalry,  renowned  for  the  steed  and 
famous  on  the  main  ;  for  thou,  O  sovereign  Neptune,  son  of 

^  Lucan,  Phars.  iii.  399,  "  Lucus  erat  longo  nunquam  violatus  ab  sevo, 
Obscurum  cingens  connexis  aera  ramis,  Et  gelidas  alte  summatls  Solibus 
umbras.'' — B. 

-  The  nymphs  ofNyssa  received  the  infant  Bacchus  after  the  death  of 
Semelc,  and  nursed  him  amid  the  mouHtains.  There  arc  frequent  allu- 
sions to  this  circumstance  to  be  found  in  the  poets.    Thus  Eurip.  Cyclop.  4. 

fsvucpag  opelar  cic/uttcov  o)Xov  -rpo^ovg. 

Hyginus,  Astron.  Poet.  lib.  ii.  17. — "  Liberum  patrem — ut  rcdJercnt  nu- 
tricibus  nymphis." 

^  Sophocles  here  avails  himself  of  the  poetical  license,  at  least  if  v%e 
may  give  credit  in  preference  to  the  accurate  Strabo  :  6  /Jtr  K7]QiacGr — 
^£i/j.ufjf)cj6>/r  TO  rr'Atov,  Otpovg  6c  /ueiovrat  reAtur. — Tu.  But  sec  Brunck. 
— B. 

■^  Even  the  LacedaDmonians,  in  their  ravages  of  Attica,  spared  this  con- 
secrated tree. 

*  i.  c,  neither  Xerxes  nor  Archidamus.  Sec  Hcrodot.  viii.  55,  and  Rci- 
Big's  note. — B. 

*  Sec  Rcisig. — B. 


714—748.]  CEDIFUS  COLONEL'S.  79 

Saturn,  lir.st  raifeed  her  to  this  gloiy,  having  first,  in  these 
iields,  Ibunded  the  bit  to  tame  the  horse ;  and  the  well-rowed 
boat  da^^hcd  forth  by  the  hand,  bounds  marvelouslj  through 
the  brine,  tracking  on  the  hujidred-footcd^  daughters  of  Ke- 
rens. 

Ant,  O  plain,  highest  commended  with  praises,  now  it  is 
fitting  for  you  to  make  manifest  these  brilliant  eulogies. 

CEd.  And  Avhat  new  event  is  there,  my  child  ? 

Ant.  Creon  here,  O  father,  approaches  near  us,  not  with- 
out attendants. 

OSi).  Dearest  old  men,  from  you  row  already  may  the  goal 
of  safety  appear  to  me. 

Cii.  Be  confident,  the  safety  shall  be  present ;  for  though 
I  am  an  old  man,  the  strenijth  of  this  land  hath  not  crown 
old. 

Ckeox.  Ye  men,  illustrious  inhabitants  of  this  soil,^  1  per- 
ceive from  your  eyes  that  you  have  felt  some  sudden  fear  at 
my  approach,  wliom  do  ye  neither  fear,  nor  assail  mth  evil 
word ;  for  I  come  not  as  wishing  to  do  any  thing,  since  I 
indeed  am  an  old  man,  and  I  know  that  I  come  to  a  city 
which,  if  any  other  in  Greece,  is  mighty  in  power.  But  I,  of 
such  an  age,  was  sent  to  persuade  this  man  to  follow  me  to 
the  Cadmeian  plain,  not  from  the  bidding  of  one,  but  charged 
by  all  the  citizens,  since  it  appertains  by  affinity  to  me,  most 
of  all  the  citv,  to  mourn  the  sutierings  of  this  man.  But.  O 
wretched  CEdipus,  listening  to  me,  return  home :  all  the 
people  of  Cadmus  justly  invite  you,  and  of  these  I  most  of  all, 
inasmuch  as,  if  I  vrere  not  by  nature  the  basest  of  men,  I 
crieve  more  over  your  misfortunes,  seeing  you  unhappy, 
beino;  indeed  a  strancer,  and  ever  a  wanderer,  and  with 
the  aid  of  a  single  attendant,  going  in  want  of  life's  sub- 
sistence :  vrhom  I,  Tv'retched,  never  thought  v/ould  have  fallen 

^  This  does  not  imply  that  each  of  the  daughters  had  a  hundred  feet, 
but  that,  being  fifty  in  number,  they  mustered,  at  the  usual  allowance  cf 
two  apiece,  this  quantity  altogether.  The  conceit  is  silly,  mean,  and  un- 
v>orthy  of  the  poet. — Te.     But  see  Wunder. — B. 

2  Brunck  has  much  improved  the  text  here  by  substituting  iyyeieJg  for 
the  old  reading  evyei'elg.  The  epithet  is  used  with  much  address  by  the 
insidious  Creon  ;  for  there  was  no  point  on  which  the  Athenians  loved 
more  to  be  complimented  than  on  being  yrjyevelq  or  airoxGove^,  the  ab- 
ori:Tir!al  iidiabitants  cf  the  soil. — Tr..  But  surely  cvyevel^  comes  to  the 
Ga.:i;c  tliin-il— B. 


80  CEDIPL.S  (;OLONEi:S.  [749—792. 

into  fco  much  of  misery,  as  liaplees  rIig  lias  fallen,  always  car- 
ing for  you  and  your  person  V\'itli  the  food  of  beggary,  of  such 
an  age,  yet  not  liaving  experienced  wedlock,  but  the  prey  of 
every  one  who  meets  her  to  ravish.  Have  I  not  then,  O  mis- 
erable man  that  I  am,  uttered  a  wretched  rcproacli  against  you, 
and  me,  and  our  whole  race  ?  ]jut,  for  it  is  impossible  to  con- 
ceal the  things  that  are  exposed  to  the  view,  do  you  now,  O 
Oedipus,  by  the  gods  of  our  country,  obeying  me,  conceal  them, 
having  been  willing  to  return  to  the  city  and  hemes  of  your 
fathers,  bidding  friendly  forewell  to  this  city,  for  she  is  worthy 
cf  it ;  but  your  city,  at  home,  may  with  right  be  more  revered, 
being  of  old  your  nurse. 

CKd.  Oh  thou  who  darest  every  thing,  and  who  from  every 
just  speech  extractest  the  wily  device,  why  do  you  attempt 
these  things,  and  why  do  you,  a  second  time,  vrish  to  catch 
me  in  what  I  should  most  grieve  when  caught?  For  for- 
merly, when  I  was  sickening  with  domestic  evils,  when  it 
was  agreeable  to  me  to  be  exiled  from  the  land,  }-ou  were  not 
willing  to  grant  this  favor  to  my  wish ;  but  when  already  I 
Yv'as  satisfied  with  anger,  and  it  was  sweet  to  me  to  spend  my 
days  in  my  home,  then  you  drove  me  cut  and  cast  r„c  forth  ; 
nor  then  was  the  tie  of  kindred  by  any  means  dear  to  you. 
And  now  again,  when  you  see  this  city  meeting  me  with 
benevolence,  and  all  its  peoj^le,  you  attempt  to  drag  me  away, 
proposing  harsh  measures  in  a  soft  way.  And  yet  what 
pleasure  is  this  to  love  people  against  their  will  ?  as  if  any 
one  to  you,  pressing  to  obtain,  should  grant  nothing,  nor 
wish  to  aid  you,  but  to  you,  having  your  mind  satisfied  with 
what  you  required,  should  then  give  it  when  the  favor 
procures  no  gratitude,  would  not  you  obtain  this  a  vain 
pleasure?  Such  things  do  you  indeed  also  offer  to  me,  in 
word  good,  but  in  fact  evil ;  and  to  these  also  will  I  tell  it, 
that  I  may  prove  you  base.  You  come  to  take  me  away,  not 
that  you  may  conduct  me  home,  but  that  you  may  place  me 
by  your  borders,  and  tliat  your  city  may  1)0  freed  to  you 
unhurt  by  evils  from  this  land.  These  things  are  not  grant- 
ed to  you  ;  but  those  are,  my  avenging  spirit  ever  dwelling 
there  in  the  land  ;  and  to  my  sons  it  is  permitted  to  obtain  at 
least  so  great  a  portion  of  tlie  soil  as  only  to  die  in.  Do  1 
not  then  conceive  better  of  the  affairs  of  Thebes  than  ycu  ? 
ISfiu'Ii  better,  sure,  inasmuch  as  I  hear  llicm  from  li.orc  i:n- 


793—817.]  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  81 

erring  sources,  from  Phoebus,^  and  from  Jove  himself,  who  is 
his  sire.  But  your  falsified  lips  have  come  hither,  having 
much  tongue-doughtiness ;  but  by  your  speech  you  will  get 
more  harm  than  safety.  3)ut,  for  1  know  that  I  shall  not 
thus  persuade  you,  go,  and  suffer  us  to  live  here  ;  for  not 
even  faring  thus,  shall  we  live  unhappily,  if  we  are  con- 
tented. 

Ck.  Whether  do  you  deem,  in  your  present  v/ords,  that  I 
am  unfortunate  as  regards  your  affairs,  or  rather  you  as  re- 
gards your  own  ? 

CEd.  It  is  most  agi'eeable  to  me,  indeed,  if  you  are  neither 
able  to  persuade  me,  nor  these  beside  me. 

Cr.  Unhappy  man,  neither  by  time  do  you  appear  to  have 
given  birth  to  vv^isdom,  but  nourish  the  bane  of  old  age. 

QCd.  You  are  powerful  in  tongue ;  but  I  never  knew  him 
a  just  man  wdio  makes  a  good  story  out  of  every  thing. 

Cn.  It  is  a  different  thing  to  s^Dcak  much  and  to  speak 
things  opportune. 

Gi.D.  As  you  forsooth  utter  these  things  both  briefly  and  to 
the  point. 

Cr.  No,  in  truth,  to  wdiomsoever  at  least  there  is  a  mind 
like  that  in  you. 

G^D.  Depart,  for  I  will  speak  also  for  these,  nor  guard  me, 
keeping  a  look  out  where  it  is  fitting  I  should  dwell.'- 

Cr.  I  call  these  to  witness,  not  you.  But  for  the  w^ords 
you  answer  even  to  your  friends — if  ever  I  take  you-^ — 

CEd.  And  who  shall  seize  me  against  the  v/ill  of  these  my 
allies? 

Cr.  Assuredly,  even  exclusive  of  this,  you  shall  grieve* 

GiId.  With  what  sort  of  deed  do  you  threaten  this  1 

^  Tha  ancient  superstition  was,  that  Phoebus  only  retailed  the  oracles 
which  he  received  from  his  father  Jove.  Thus  .^Eschylus  in  the  Suj». 
plices  : 

"EreXTielv  orrog  ruxLora-  ravra  yup  TcaTijp 
Z£j)f  h/Kadel  A.o^ia. — Tr. 
Eum.   19,   Aiaf   Trpo(p7]T'i]g   6'   earl  Ao^iag  rrarpo^.     Virg.  ^-En.  iii.   251. 
"  Quae  Phoebo  pater  omnipotens,  mihi  Phoebus  Apollo  Pra3dixit." — B. 

^  Such  is  the  sense  of  ecpop/ielv  (for  ecjyop/idv  is  not  the  word,  as  Rost 
observes).  So  it  is  used  of  blockading  a  harbor  in  Xcnoph.  Hellcn.  i.  G, 
.38  ;   vi.  2,  7.— B. 

^  See  Hermann's  note. — B. 

*  That  is,  "  exclusive  of  my  overpowering  your  defenders,  and  carry- 
in  t  you  off." 

D  2 


82  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [818—840. 

Ck.  Of  your  tv/o  daughters,  having  just  seized  one,  I  have 
sent  her  away,  and  the  oth.er  I  will  quickly  bear  oiF. 

CEd.  AVoc  is  nie ! 

CiJ.  You  shall  speedily  have  reason  to  cry  Avoe  the  more  for 
these  thiniis. 

err 

(Ed.   Have  you  my  child  ? 

Cr.  Ay,  and  shall  have  this  one  too,  in  no  long  lime. 

CKd.  Oh  strangers!  AVhat  will  ye  do?  Will  ye  betray 
me?  and  will  ye  not  drive  avray  the  impious  man  from  this 
land? 

Cii.  Away,  stranger,  out  with  speed,  for  neither  now  dost 
thou  what  is  just,  nor  previously  didst  thou. 

Ck.  It  must  be  your  office  to  conduct  her  away  against 
her  will,  if  she  will  not  go  willingly. 

Ant.  Woe  is  me,  unhappy  woman  !  Whither  shall  I  fly  ? 
What  aid  shall  I  gain  from  gods  or  men  ? 

Cii.  What  doest  thou,  oh  stranger? 

Ck.  I  will  not  touch  this  man,  but  her,  mine  oa\ti.^ 

Q'^D.  Oh,  princes  of  the  land  ! 

Cii.  Oh  stranger !  thou  doest  not  what  is  just. 

Ck.  It  is  just. 

Cii.  How  just? 

Cr.  I  carry  away  mine  own. 

Ant.  Oh  state  P 

Cii.  What  doest  thou,  oh  stranger?  Will  you  not  let  her 
go  ?     Ouickly  shall  you  come  to  the  trial  of  arms. 

Cr.  ilold  off. 

Cii.  Not  from  you  at  least,  while  bent  on  these  things. 

Cr.  For  you  war  with  the  state,  if  you  injure  me  in 
ausfht.^ 

Gi)d.  Have  I  not  foretold  this? 

Cii.  Let  go  the  maid  immediately  from  your  hands. 

Cr.  Command  not  those  things  of  which  you  are  not 
master. 

Cii.  I  bid  you  let  go. 

Cr.  And  I  bid  you  proceed  on  your  way. 

'  "  My  kinswoman,"  wliicli  sho  was  by  l>cin;T  the  (laughter  of  his  sister 
Jocasta.  This  was  but  an  incliUcrcnt  plea,  however,  for  carrying  her  olV 
from  her  father. 

'  Assigned  to  (Edipus  by  Wander. — 13. 

^  The  dramati.s  persona)  arc  arranged  according  to  Dir.d.  and  WunJ.— B. 


841—872.]  CLIBIPUS  COLONEUS.  8S 

Cii.  Conic  liillicr,  conic,  come,  ye  dwellers  in  the  place. 
The  city,  my  city,  is  violutcd  by  force.     Hither  come  to  me. 

Ant.  I,  wretched,  am  dragged  away,  O  strangers  !  stran- 
gers !  r 

Old.  Vriierc,  my  child,  are  you? 

AxT.   I  go  away  by  force. 

QiId.  Stretch  forth,  my  daughter,  your  hands. 

Ant,  liut  I  have  not  the  pov^^er. 

Cn.  Vrili  you  not  drag  her  away? 

HId.  Oh  wretched,  wretched  man  that  I  am ! 

Cr.  Xo  longer,  then,  on  these  two  props  shall  you  travel 
along ;  but  since  you  Avish  to  prevail  against  your  country 
and  your  friends,  by  whom  I,  appointed,  do  these  things,  even 
although  king,  prevail.  For  in  time  I  know  you  will  under- 
stand this  much,  that  you  neither  now  do  what  is  goodly 
yourself  tovrard  yourself,  nor  formerly  did,  against  the  will 
of  your  friends,  gratifying  that  anger  which  always  works 
your  ruin. 

Cii.  Hold  tliere,  stranger. 

Cr.  I  forbid  you  to  touch  me. 

Cii.  I  will  not,  deprived  at  least  of  these  two  maidens,  let 
you  go. 

Cr.  You  will  quickly,  then,  cause  a  gi-eater  pledge  to  be 
redeemed  by  the  city;  for  1  will  not  lay  hold  of  these  two 
alone. 

Cii.  But  to  what  will  you  betake  yourself? 

Cr.  Seizing  hold  of  this  man,  I  will  carry  him  away. 

Cii.  Your  threat  is  dreadful. 

Cr.  Believe  me  that  it  shall  soon  be  now  accomplished,  if 
the  ruler  of  this  land  2:)revent  me  not. 

CEiy.  O  shameless  voice !   for  wilt  thou  touch  me  ? 

Cr.  I  command  you  to  be  silent. 

G{)d.  2no  ;  for  may  not  these  goddesses  yet  make  me  silent 
of  this  curse,  at  least  against  thee,  y>'ho,  O  basest  AATetch,  in 
addition  to  the  loss  of  my  former  eyes,  hast  gone  off,  car- 
lying  away  by  force  my  only  eye  that  v.^as  left ;  therefore 
may  the  all-seeing  sun  of  the  gods  give  thee  thyself,  and  thy 
race,  some  time  or  other,  to  grow  old,  like  me,  in  a  life  such 
as  this. 

Cr.   Behold  ye  this,  ye  inhabitants  of  this  land? 

CEd.  They   see  both  thee  and   me;    and   undcrt^tand  that. 


84  Q]I)IPUS  COLONEUS.  [873—005. 

liavimr  suilercd  in  deeds,  I  revenfjc  mvself  on  thee  with 
"\vord<. 

Ck.  I  will  not  restrain  iny  anger,  but  will  carry  him  off  by 
force,  even  though  I  am  alone  and  slow  through  age. 

(Ed.   O  wretched  me  ! 

Cii.  AYith  how  much  audacity  hast  thou  come,  O  stranger, 
if  you  deem  you  shall  accomplish  these  things ! 

Cr.  I  deem  I  shall. 

Cii.  Then  I  no  longer  count  this  a  state. 

Ck.  In  the  cause  of  justice,  even  the  small  overcomes  the 
crreat. 

G^D.  Do  you  hear  what  sort  of  things  he  utters  ? 

Cii.  Things  which  at  least  he  shall  not  accomplish. 

Cr.  Jove  may  know  these  things,  but  not  thou. 

Cii.  I^ut  is  not  this  insult  1 

Ck.  Yes,  insult ;  but  it  must  be  borne. 

Ch.  Ho  !  all  ye  people !  IIo !  ye  chiefs  of  the  land ! 
Come  Vv'ith  speed ;  come,  since  they  already  are  passing  all 
bounds. 

Theseus.  What  can  be  this  clamor?  What  is  the  matter? 
From  what  possible  fear  have  ye  checked  me  in  the  sacrifice 
of  oxen  at  the  altar  to  the  ocean-god,  the  president  of  this 
Colonus?  Tell  me,  that  I  may  know  the  whole,  for  the  sake 
of  which  I  have  rushed  hither  more  quickly  than  suited  the 
ease  of  my  feet. 

QEd.  O  dearest  friend — for  I  knew  thy  voice — I  have  just 
suffered  dreadful  things  at  the  hands  of  this  man. 

Tii.  Of  what  kind  are  they  ?  and  who  did  you  the  wrong  ? 
Speak. 

(Ed.  Creon  here,  whom  you  see,  has  carried  off  the  sole 
pair  of  my  daughters. 

Tii.  How  sayest  thou  ? 

(Ed.  Thou  hast  heard  what  things  I  have  suffered. 

Tii.  AvlU  not,  then,  some  one  of  the  servants,  going  as 
quickly  as  possible  to  these  altars,  compel  all  the  people,  both 
unmounted  and  mounted,  to  hasten  from  the  sacrifice  with 
loosened  rein,  where  the  double-opening  paths  of  the  way- 
farers nearest  meet,  that  the  virgins  may  not  pass  by,  and  I, 
vanquished  by  force,  become  a  laughing-stock  to  this  stranger 
ilUow?  Go,  as  I  have  commanded,  Avith  speed.  And  this 
man,  indeed,  if  I  had  come  witli  the  anger  of  which  he  is 


GOG— 938. J  (EDIPUS  COLONEL'S.  85 

worthy,  I  should  not  have  giiifcred  to  pass  through  my  hands 
without  ii  wound ;  but  now  with  those  laws,  which  having, 
he  entered  the  country,^  vrith  those,  and  no  other,  shall  he 
be  fitted.  For  you  shall  never  depart  from  the  land  till, 
bringing  those  virgins  here,  you  place  them  plain  before  me, 
since  you  liave  acted  in  a  way  neither  worthy  of  me,  nor 
of  those  from  whom  you  are  sprung,  nor  of  thine  own 
country ;  you  who  entering  a  state  that  practices  justice, 
and  ratifies  nothing  without  the  law,  and  then  disregarding 
the  authorities  of  this  land,  breaking  in  thus,  carry  off  what 
you  choose,  and  make  them  subject  to  you  by  force.  And 
to  me,  you  must  have  thought  that  there  was  a  city  void 
of  men,  or  slavish,  and  that  I  was  the  same  as  nobody.  And 
yet  Thebes,  at  least,  did  not  teach  you  to  be  base ;  for  she 
is  not  wont  to  train  up  unjust  men,  nor  would  she  praise 
you,  if  she  heard  of  you  violating  my  rights,  and  those  of  the 
gods,  carrying  away  by  force  the  suppliant  bodies  of  wretched 
mortals.  I  would  not  certainly,  entering  your  country, 
though  I  had  the  justest  pretenses  in  the  world,  I  would  not, 
without  the  ccmsent  of  the  sovereign  of  the  land  at  least, 
Avhosoever  he  were,  have  either  dragged  or  carried  away ;  but 
I  would  have  known  how  it  were  proper  for  a  stranger  to 
conduct  himself  among  citizens.  Eut  jou  yourself  disgrace 
your  own  country,  not  worthy  of  reproach,  and  increasing  years 
make  you  at  once  an  old  man  and  a  dotard.  I  have  said  then 
both  before,  and  I  repeat  it  now,  let  some  one,  as  quickly  as 
possible,  bring  hither  the  maidens,  unless  you  wish  to  become 
a,  foreign  dweller  in  this  land  by  force  and  against  your  will  ;2 
and  this  sentence  I  pronounce  to  you  equally  with  my  mind 
and  with  my  tongue. 

Cii.  Do  you  see  to  what  you  have  come,  O  stranger?  so 
that  by  those  from  whom  you  are  sprung  you  appear  just,  but 
are  detected  in  doinn;  what  is  base. 

^  That  is,  "  Quandoquidcm  sub  amici  specie  venit,  non  pro  hoste  habe- 
bitur." — Musfjiave. 

^  MtTOLKog  was  the  name  appropriated  to  df  signate  a  foreigner  resident 
in  Athens.  There  was  a  very  large  class  of  this  description,  as  we  may 
ece  by  the  numbers  of  them  that  went  out  in  various  expeditions  during 
the  Peloponnesian  war.  It  is  in  this  body  that  Theseus  threatens  to  in- 
corporate Creon  ;  adding,  for  the  sake  of  perspicuity  rather  than  brevity, 
that  it  should  not  only  be  by  force,  but  <i}ko  against  his  will. — Tr.  The 
wonder  is,  how  Creon  was  silly  enough  {.o  trust  himself  upon  a  frecboot- 
ing  adventure  in  a  country  not  his  own,  'v/ith  no  efficient  guard. — B. 


86  a^Dir-C.S  COLONEUS.  [939— 9G8 

Cr.  I,  neither  considering  this  city  without  citizens,  O  son 
of  ^Ii^geus,  nor  without  counsel,  as  you  allege,  have  achieved 
this  deed;  but  conceiving  that  no  such  violent  love  of  my 
kindred  would  ever  fall  on  these  men,  so  that  they  Vv'ouid 
maintain  them  against  my  will.  And  1  knew  that  they  would 
not  receive  a  parricide  and  wretch  impure,  nor  one  to  wliom 
there  was  found  subsisting  the  unhallowed  marriage  of  child 
[with  mother].  Of  this  nature  I  knew  v/ith  them  the  Areo- 
pagus' sage  council  coeval  with  the  soil,^  which  does  not  per- 
mit such  wandering  beggars  to  dwell  to«:ether  in  this  citv. 
On  it  relying  I  essayed  this  prey ;  and  I  would  not  have  done 
so  had  he  not  imprecated  bitter  curses  on  me  myself,  and  on 
my  race  ;  in  return  for  which,  I,  having  sufiered,  thought  tit  to 
make  this  retaliation  ;  for  of  anger  there  is  no  other  old  age 
except  in  death,  but  no  grief  alfects  the  dead.  You  will  there- 
fore do  vvdiatsoever  you  please,  since  my  unguarded  state,  even 
tliough  I  say  what  is  just,  makes  me  feeble.  But  to  deeds, 
nevertheless,  even  being  aged  as  I  am,  I  will  endeavor  to  make 
requital. 

G^D.  O  shameless  audacity!  whom  do  you  think  you  insult 
in  this,  v.diethcr  me,  an  old  n^ian,  cr  yourself?  who  h.avc 
uttered  to  me  from  your  lips  the  slaughters,  and  marriages, 
and  calamities,  Vvdiich  I,  Avretched,  have  unwillingly  endured. 
For  to  the  gods  it  thus  seemed  fit  perchance,  beai'ing  wrath 
for  some  offense  against  the  race  of  old  ;^  since  in  myself  at 
least  you  would  not  find  any  reproach  of  guilt,  in  return  for 

^  XdSviov  is  translated  by  some  "  subterraneous,"  referring  it  to  the 
manner  in  which  the  council  sat,  always  in  the  dark,  and  deep  below 
ground.  The  compliments  which  Creon  pa3-s  it  are  just ;  for  though  the 
nature  of  it  be  not  so  well  known  as  might  be  wished,  there  is  little  doubt 
that  it  was  one  of  the  wisest  and  best  institutions  of  antiquity.  The  proof 
of  this  is  found  in  its  rigid  and  impartial  administration  during  the  most 
corrupt  times,  and  in  its  duration  and  reverence  long  after  the  more  splen- 
did glories  of  Athens  had  all  departed. 

^  The  Calvinism,  or  rather  fatalism,  of  the  Greeks  was  very  strong. 
They  implicitly  believed  in  a  predestined  chain  of  evils,  commencing  with 
the  guilty  deed  of  some  individual,  and  continuing  through  all  his  future 
race,  till  vengeance  was  fully  wreaked  by  its  extermination.  The  trage- 
dians avail  themselves  very  successfully  of  this  superstition  ;  and  the  prin- 
ciple is  in  itself,  indeed,  finely  calculated  for  heightening  the  dramatic  ef- 
fect. There  is  something  fearful  in  the  darkling  way  in  which  the  de- 
voted victims  of  heaven's  wrath  are  hurried  on  to  penal  destruction,  while 
there  is  an  adaiirable  opportunity  aiforded,  by  the  innocence  of  the  prin- 
cipal sufferer,  to  awaken  and  justify  the  sympathy  of  the  audience. 


906—998.]  a:DIPUS  COLOInEUS.  87 

v.liich  I  perpetrated  these  sins  against  myself  and  my  kindred. 
For  tell  me,  if  an  annunciation  from  bcaven  Lad  come  to  my 
fatlier  by  oracles,  that  he  should  die  by  his  children,  hov,'  can 
you  justly  reproach  me  with  this,  wlio  had  not  at  ail  any 
jrenerative  increase  from  father  or  mother,  but  was  then 
unborn  J  And  if,  again,  when  born  to  misery,  as  I  w^as  born, 
I  came  to  strife  with  my  father,  and  slew  him,  unweening  of 
any  thing  I  did,  and  against  whom  I  did  it;  how,  at  least, 
could  you  justly  censure  that  Avliich  was  sure  an  unwilling 
'  deed '?  And  arc  you  not  ashamed,  wretch,  to  make  me  speak 
of  the  marriage  of  my  mother,  vrlio  was  your  sister  ?  a  mar- 
riage such  as  I  shall  speedily  declare ;  for  I  then  will  not  be 
silent,  when  thou,  forsooth,  hast  proceeded  to  this  imhallowed 
tale.  For  she  bore  me,  she  bore  me,  woe  is  me  for  my  mise- 
ries! she  ignorant,  me  ignorant,  and  having  given  me  birth 
she  produced  to  me  children,  her  ovrn  reproach.  But  one 
thing,  at  least,  then  I  know,  that  you  indeed  willingly  have  in 
these  words  reviled  me  and  her,  and  that  I  unwillingly  mar- 
ried her,  and  miwillinslv  mention  this.  Yet  neither  in  this 
marriao'c  shall  I  be  talked  of  as  wicked,^  nor  in- the  slaughter 
of  m.y  father,  with  Avhich  you  always  charge  me,  bitterly 
upbraiding.  For  answer  me  but  one  thing  cf  what  I  ask  you  : 
If  any  one  standing  by  here  should  immediately  attempt  to 
slay  you,  the  upright  m.an,  v/hether  would  you  inquire  if  your 
father  were  the  assassin,  or  v/ould  you  straightway  avenge 
yourself  on  him?  I  think,  indeed,  an  you  love  life,  that  you 
Avould  take  vengeance  on  the  guilty,  nor  v.-ould  consider 
what  is  iust.  Into  such  evils  I  also  have  entered,  the  gods 
impelling  me  ;  to  which  declaration  I  deem  that  the  ghost"  cf 

^  The  justification  v/hicli  CEdipus  oners  cf  himscif  in  this  speech  is  a 
little  inconsistent  vvith  the  violent  remorse  ^vhich  he  elsewhere  exhibits. 
lie  Vv-as  incensed,  hovvevor,  by  the  remarks  ofCreon  ;  and  might  feel  like 
many  other  people,  who  talk  freely  cf  their  own  imperfections,  and  yet 
get  very  wroth  if  their  neighbors  take  the  same  liberty. 

2  The  writings  of  the  tragedians,  and,  indeed,  of  all  the  ancient  poets, 
teem  with  the  notion  of  a  reappearance  of  the  dead,  and  a  revenge  upon 
those  who  had  done  them  ill  during  life  (see  ^sch.  Choeph.  32,  136, 
315,  333,  479;  Eum  94,  sqq.  ;  Eurip.  Hec.  1,  sqq.);  and  thence  it  was 
believed  that  the  ghosts  of  the  dead  might  be  summoned  into  lile,  either 
to  give  advice,  as^Darius  appears  to  Atossa  in  the  Persp,  and  as  in  the 
resuscitation  of  Polycritus  mentioned  by  Phlegon,  Trallianus,  de  mirab. 
q.  2,  p.  21,  ed.  Meurs.,  or  to  denounce  their  murderer,  as  Clytemnestra 


88  (EDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [999—1029. 

my  lather,  could  it  live,  would  not  say  the  contrary.  Ikit  you 
(for  you  are  not  just,  but  deem  eveiy  thing  j^roj^er  to  mention, 
■words  that  may,  and  words  that  may  not  be  spoken)  reproach 
me  witli  such  things  in  the  presence  of  these  men.  And  ret 
it  seems  honorable  to  you  to  Hatter  the  name  of  Theseus  and 
Atliens,  how  nobly  she  is  constituted  ;  and  while  you  thus 
praise  many  things,  you  forget  this  one,  that  if  any  land 
knoAvs  to  Avorship  the  gods  with  honors,  in  that  this  land 
excels,  from  which  you  have  endeavored  to  steal  away  me, 
myself,  an  aged  suppliant,  and  have  gone  off  with  my  daugh- 
ters. In  return  for  which,  I  now,  invoking  these  goddesses, 
supplicate  them  and  enjoin  them  in  my  prayers  to  come  my 
aUies,  and  aid,  in  order  that  you  may  well  learn  by  what  sort 
of  men  this  city  is  guarded. 

Cii.  The  stranger,  oh  king,  is  a  good  man ;  but  his  suffer- 
ings are  utterly  ruinous,  and  worthy  of  protection. 

Tii.  Enough  of  words,  since  the  ravishers  indeed  hasten 
away,  and  wo,  the  sufferers,  stand  still. 

Cr.  V\liat,  in  truth,  do  you  command  to  a  feeble  man  to  do? 

Tii.  To  begin  the  way  thither,  and  to  go  a  guide  to  me,  in 
order  that,  if  you  have  our  maidens  in  these  places,  you  your- 
self may  show  them  to  me.  But  if  those  who  have  them  in 
their  power  fly,  there  is  no  need  to  take  the  trouble  ;  for 
there  are  others  who  hasten,  for  whom  having  escaped  out  of 
this  country,  they'll  never  have  to  thank  the  gods.  Eut 
lead  on  the  way,  and  know  that  seizing,  you  are  seized,  and 
that  fortune  hath  taken  you,  the  hunter;  for  possessions  ac- 
quired by  unjust  trick  are  not  preserved.  And  you  shall  have 
no  other  one  to  assist  you  in  these  things  ;^  since"  I  know,  from 
the   daring   at   present   exhibited,   that  you   have    not   come 

in  the  Eumenides,  and  as  the  wronged  virgin  who  had  appeared  to  Pau- 
sanias  at  Byzantium,  and  subsequently  being  evoked  etc  tu  i^-iwoTrofi-elov 
by  her  murderer,  foretold  his  end  in  a  mysterious  prophcey.  Cf.  l^lutarch 
do  sera  num.  vind.  p.  40,  ed.  Wytt.  So,  also,  the  ghost  of  the  departed 
13  evoked  to  declare  his  murderer,  in  Apul.  Mctam.  ii.  p.  35  ;  and  a 
similar  ceremony  is  fully  described  in  Heliodor.  Ethiop.  vi.  14.  The 
Trophonian  vcKvo/xavTclav  is  described  by  Maximus  Tyrius,  xiv.  ^  2, 
and  tlie  -d'vxayuyol  by  Plato  de  legg.  x.  ji.  909,  B.  Stcph.  and  Liban! 
t.  i.  p.  900,  Tibull.  i.  2,  23.  Hence  the  reader  may  perceive  how  frrcat 
was  the  strength  of  this  adjuration  in  a  day  when  the  belief  that  the 
dcc-rascd  might  confront  his  murderer  even  in  this  world,  existed  — B 
'  J3i:t  see  \^'under.— B. 


1030—1072.]  (EDIPUS  COLOMEUS.  8'j 

unattciKled  or  unliarmed  for  such  great  insults;  but  there  is 
something,  on  which  relying,  you  have  done  these  things 
wiiich  it  behooves  me  to  examine,  nor  to  make  this  city  weaker 
than  a  single  man.  Understand  yoa  aught  of  these  words  ?  or 
do  they  appear  to  you  to  have  been  vainly  spoken,  both  just 
now,  and  when  you  contrived  this  attempt  ? 

Cr.  You  Aviil  say  nothing  while  here  to  be  found  fault  Avith 
by  me ;  but  at  home  we  shall  know  Avhat  it  is  fitting  to  do. 

Tii.  Go  now  and  threaten. ^  But  do  you,  O  CEdipus,  remain 
here  with  us  in  quiet,  assured  that  if  I  do  not  first  die,  I  shall 
not  cease  until  I  put  you  in  possession  of  your  children. 

GLd.  May  you  be  blest,  O  Theseus !  both  for  the  sake  of 
your  generous  spirit,  and  your  righteous  provident  care  of  us. 

Ciionus.  Would  that  I  were  where  the  gatherings  of  hos- 
tile men  shall  quickly  mingle  in  the  brazen  din  of  battle,  either 
by  the  Pythian  shrines'  or  the  gleaming^  shores,  where  the 
awful  goddesses  foster  for  the  mortal  race*  those  hallovv'ed 
rites  of  which  the  golden  key  hath  even  come  upon  the  tongue 
of  the  ministering  Eumolpida?.^  There  methinks  that  Theseus^ 
awaking  the  fight  and  the  twin  virgin  sisters  will  quickly  en- 
gage with  prevailing  shouts  in  these  regions  ;  or  somewhere 
are  they  approaching,  from  .iEa's  pastures,  the  western  ridge 
of  the  snowy  rock,  flying  on  steeds,  or  with  racings  that  whirl 
alonn;  the  car?  He  will  be  taken.'^  Dreadful  is  the  martial 
spirit  of  the  natives,  and  dreadful  the  might  of  the  sons  of 
Theseus ;  for  every  bit  is  gleaming,  and  every  one  is  hastening 
to  mount  the  steeds  with  frontlet  trappings — they,  who  honor 
equestrian  jMinerva,  and  the  earth-encircling  king  of  ocean, 

^  See  Rcisig. — B. 

2  The  slirine  alluded  to  was  dedicated  to  the  Pythian  Apollo  at  Mara- 
thon. 

^  Gleaminof  with  the  sacred  torches  made  use  of  in  the  Eleusinian 
mysteries. 

*  There  is  something  in  the  mystery  and  solemnity  of  this  expression 
that  would  half  induce  one  to  believe  in  Warburton"s  theory  of  the  wor- 
ship of  the  one  and  true  God  being  preserved  at  Eleusis. 

°  The  scholiasts  give  us  different  accounts  of  the  lirst  Eumolpus  ;  but 
whoever  he  may  have  been,  his  descendants  retained  his  name  and  office 
of  priesthood  at  Eleusis. 

^  But  sec  Herm.  and  Wund. — B. 

■^  Hermann  v/ell  remarks  that  u'Auaerat  refers  to  Creon.  The  translator 
had  connected  it  v.ith  6ccvug....'ApTj^. — B. 


DO  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [1073—1108. 

Ehcii's  clear  son.  Do  they  fight  ?  or  arc  they  on  the  point  of 
engaging?!  How  my  mind  presages  something  to  me,  that 
they  shall  quickly  give  up  her  who  has  endured  dreadful  things, 
and  met  with  dreadful  sufterings  at  the  hands  of  her  kindred ! 
Jove  will  accomplish,  he  will  accomplish  something  this  day. 
I  am  the  prophet  of  a  successful  strife.  Would  that  I  a  dove, 
borne  fleet  as  the  M'hirhvind,  with  the  speed  of  strength,  might 
from  a  cloud  on  high  reach  these  contests,  having  lifted  aloft 
mine  eyes!^  O  Jove,  all-ruler  of  gods,  whose  eye  is  over  all, 
grant  to  the  leaders  of  the  people  of  this  land  in  conquering 
strength  to  crown  their  ambush  with  the  glorious  prey !  and 
thy  hallowed  daughter,  Pallas  Minerva  ;  and  the  hunter  Apol- 
lo, and  his  sister  that  pursues  the  swift-footed  dappled  fawns 
— I  implore  to  come  a  twofold  aid  to  this  land  and  to  its  citi- 
zens. Oh  wandei'ing  stranger,  you  will  not  say  to  your  watch- 
man that  he  is  a  false  prophet,  for  I  see  these  virgins  again 
liither  near  approaching. 

(Ed.  Where  ?  Avhere  ?     Vriiat  say  you  ?     How  said  you  ? 

Ant.  Oh  father!  father!  who  of  the  gods  would  grant 
you  to  behold  this  best  of  men,  who  has  sent  us  hither  to 
you? 

CEd.   Oh  my  child,  are  ye  two  present  ? 

Ant.  Yes ;  for  these  hands  of  Theseus,  and  of  his  dearest 
attendants,  have  preserved  us. 

Gi^D.  Come  hither,  oh  dauahtcr !  to  your  father,  and  "-rant 
rce  to  touch  that  body  v/hich  I  never  hoped  would  have  re- 
turned. 

Ant.  You  ask  what  you  shall  obtain  ;  for  v.'ith  longing  is 
this  favor  [granted]. ^ 

Q^D.  Where,  in  truth,  where  are  ye? 

Ant.  Here  we  are,  approaching  together. 

Gi^D.   Oh  dearest  branches ! 

Ant.  To  its  author  every  thing  is  dear. 

^  MDJ.nvat  is  VvTongly  given  by  Brunck  "  iiiorantur,"  which  is  not 
only  false  to  the  meaning,  bat  totally  does  away  with  the  energy  of  the 
passage. — Tr.  Cf.  Thucyd.  i.  ?/  [j.tX7<.ov~cg  rrokcfiTicELV,  7}  Lv  dvru  ydi] 
ovreg. — B. 

^  The  order  is  TzeACLug  {<!(/)  aWcpiac  ve(p'  icoprjaaca  Tovfibv  6fi/j.a  Kvp- 
aai/LLi  TcJvd'  uvuvcjv.     See  Wunder. — B. 

^  Gvv  Tzodco  yap  y  X'^P'-^i  ^-  ^-i  gratiam  pctis  quam  ipsa)  ultro  pracstare 
cupidissimae  sumus. — Musgravc. 


1109— 1149. J  CCDIPUS  COLONEUS.  91 

CEd.  Oil  props  of  a  mar. — 

Ant.  Of  an  unljappy  man,  tliougii,  the  miliappy  props — 

CEd.  I  clasp  what  is  tlcarcFt  to  me  ;  nor  slioiiH  I  any  lon- 
ger be  utterly  wretched  in  death,  you  two  standing  by  me. 
Support,  oh  my  child,  both  my  sides ;  implanting  yourselves 
in  }our  planter,  and  make  me  to  cease  from  my  fomier  solitary 
and  wretched  wandering;  and  tell  me  Avhat  has  been  done,  as 
brielly  as  possible,  since  few  words  suffice  to  virgi'^s  of  such  an 
aiie. 

AxT.  This  is  he  here  who  saved  us:  to  him  U  is  fitting  to 
listen,  oh  fatlier !  and  this  business  will  be  shorl  both  to  you 
and  me. 

G^D.  O  stranger,  wonder  not  at  my  earnestness,  if,  my  chil- 
dren having  unexpectedly  appeared,  I  lengthen  mj  w^ords !  for 
I  know  that  this  delight,  given  by  you  to  nifi  in  them,  has 
arisen  from  no  other ;  for  you  have  preserved  them,  and  no 
other  mortal.  And  may  the  gods  give  to  you,  ns  I  Avish,  both 
to  yourself  and  this  land ;  since  among  you,  at  least,  alone  of 
men,  have  I  found  piety,  and  equity,  and  truth.  And  having 
experienced  them,  I  repay  them  with  these  wrrds ;  for  I  have 
w^hat  I  have  through  you,  and  no  other  mort^^l.  And  stretch 
cut,  oh  king,  your  right  hand  to  me,  that  I  y^ay  touch  it,  and 
kiss,  if  it  be  lawful,  your  brow.  And  yet  what  do  I  say? 
How  should  I,  wdio  have  been  miserable,  Vv'ish  to  touch  a  man 
v,'ith  whom  tlicre  is  no  stain  of  evils  an  inj^iate '?  I  will  not 
touch  you,  nor,  therefore,  will  I  permit  you  [to  touch  me] ; 
for  it  is  possible  only  to  such  mortals  as  hnve  had  experience 
of  them,  to  join  in  supporting  miseries  lik'^.  these.  But  do  you, 
from  that  spot,  receive  my  farewell,  and  for  the  future  justly 
take  care  of  me,  as  you  have  done  to  thh  day. 

Tii.  Neither  if  you  have  made  the  length  of  your  words 
greater,  being  delighted  w^itli  these  diildren,  do  I  wonder  ; 
nor  if,  in  preference  to  me,  you  hr-ve  first  chosen  their  con- 
A'crsation ;  for  no  displeasure  froPA  these  things  possesses  me  ; 
for  I  do  not  strive  to  make  mv  hie  more  glorious  bv  words 
tlian  by  deeds.  And  I  prove  it  c  for  of  those  things  which  I 
swore,  I  have  deceived  jou,  o(d  man,  in  nothing ;  for  I  r.m 
present,  bringing  thes^  \irgin.s  alive,  uninjured  by  what  v. as 
threatened  against  them.  UKiKi  how,  indeed,  this  contest  was 
v.on — wnat  need  i^  there  vainly  to  vaunt  that  which  you,  at 
any  rate,  v/,ll  >.£-,/ p,  ^o^^j^'if  from  these  tvro,  associating  with 


92  CEDIPUS  COLOXEUS.  [1150—1175 

them  ?  lUit  apply  }-oiir  mind  to  the  tale  that  has  just  met  me, 
coming  hither,  since  it  is  trifling  indeed  to  tell,  but  worthy  to 
excite  Avonder ;  and  it  is  titling  that  a  man  should  neglect  no 
matter. 

CEd.  And  what  is  it,  son  of  ^geus?  Instruct  me,  as  I 
myself  know  nothing  of  those  things  of  which  you  are  inform- 
ed. 

Tii.  They  say  that  some  man,  being  no  felloAv-citizen  indeed 
of  yours,  but  a  kinsman,  sits  somehow  a  suppliant  at  our  altar 
of  Neptune,  by  which  I  chanced  to  be  sacriiicing  when  I  rush- 
ed aT^'ay. 

Q]d.  Of  what  country  ?  Seeking  what  by  this  supplicatoiy 
posture  ? 

Th.  I  know  but  one  thing ;  for  he  requests,  as  they  tell  me, 
a  short  conversation  with  you,  not  full  of  trouble. 

GLd.  Of  what  kind  ?  for  this  sitting  by  the  altar  is  of  no 
slight  import. 

Th.  They  say  that  he,  coming,  requests  to  come  to  conver- 
sation Avitli  you,  and  to  depart  without  injur}^  from  his  journey 
hither. 

Q^D.  A^lio  then  can  he  be  who  sits  in  this  posture  ? 

Th.  See  if  at  Argos  there  be  any  kinsman  to  you,  who  would 
seek  to  obtain  this  from  you. 

QiiB.   Oh,  dearest  friend,  hold  where  you  are. 

Th.  "What  is  the  matter  ■s\'ith  you? 

OEd.  Ask  me  not. 

Th.  Of  what  sort  of  thing?     Speak. 

CEd.  I  fully  know,  hearing  these  words, ^  who  is  the  suppli- 
ant. 

Th.  And  who  at  all  is  he  whom  I  should  have  cause  to  rep- 
rehend ? 

G^D.  It  is  my  hated  son,  oh  king !  whose  words  most  pain- 
fully of  all  men  would  I  endure  to  liear. 

Tii.  But  why  ?     Is  it  not  permitted  you  to  hear  and  to 

^  uKovuv  TcJvde,  sc.  /mjcov.  Brumoy  conceives  TraiSov  to  be  the  word 
understood  ;  "Antigone  et  sa  soeur  devinent  que  cVst  leur  frere  Polvnicc, 
ct  elles  le  disent  a  leur  pere."  Pray  what  is  the  occasion  o{  givintr  the 
young  ladies  more  penetration  than  their  father  !  The  words  of  Theseus 
were  so  plain  that  Q^dipus,  except  he  v.'erc  deaf  as  well  as  blind,  must 
have  very  easily  made  out  the  matter. 


1173—1219.]  CEDIPUS  CGLONEUS.  93 

refrain  from  doinsi;  -wliat  you  do  not  wisli?     Vx^liy  is  it  disa- 
grccable  to  yon  to  listen  ? 

(i^^D.  This  yoicG,  oh  king!  comes  most  hateful  to  a  father; 
and  do  not  urge  me  of  necessity  to  grant  this  request. 

Tii.  But  if  his  seat  compel  you,  consider  if  the  reverence  of 
the  diyinity  be  not  to  be  obseryed. 

Ant.  Father,  obey  me,  though  young  I  give  adyice.  Suf- 
fer this  mau^  to  2:iye  gratification  to  his  own  mind,  and  to 
the  god  what  he  wishes ;  and  to  us  twain  gi'ant  that  our 
brother  should  come ;  for  be  confident  that  whateyer  he  shall 
say  inexpedient  to  you,  will  not  peryert  you  by  force  from 
your  purpose.  And  what  hurt  is  it  to  hear  words?  works 
of  the  most  glorious  inyention  are  made  known  by  words. 
You  begat  him ;  so  that  neither,  O  father,  though  he  did  to 
you  the  worst  of  most  impious  wrongs,  is  it  lawful  for  you  at 
least  to  repay  him  with  eyil  i^  but  sutler  him  ;  there  are  also 
to  others  bad  children  and  fierce  anger,  but  admonished  by 
the  spell-words  of  friends,  they  are  softened  in  nature.  But 
do  you  not  now  look  back  to  those  sufferings  from  father  and 
mother  which  you  endured  ;  though  eyen  if  you  look  on  them, 
I  know  you  y/ill  perceive  the  end  of  evil  anger,  how  it  comes 
in  addition  evil;  for  you  bear  no  slight  impressions  of  this,  be- 
ing deprived  of  your  sightless  eyes.  But  yield  to  us;  for  it 
is  not  good  for  those  to  press,  who  ask  for  just  things,  nor  for 
you  yourself  to  receive  benefits,  and  having  received,  not  to 
know  how  to  repay  them. 

(Ed.  '^ly  child,  ye  gain  from  me  by  your  speeches  a  re- 
luctant pleasure.  Let  it  be  then  as  is  agreeable  to  you  ;  only, 
friend,  if  he  shall  come  hither,  let  no  one  ever  liave  control 
over  me. 

Tii.  Once,  old  man,  not  twice,  do  I  seek  to  hear  such  re- 
quests. I  wish  not  to  boast ;  but  know  that  you  are  safe,  if 
any  one  of  the  gods  shall  also  preserve  me. 

Chorus.  Whoever  seeks  to  live  for  a  lengthened  term,  neg- 
lecting the  mean,  will  be  proved  in  my  mind  to  cherish  folly; 
since  oft  has  length  of  days  brought  us  nearer  to  pain,  and  you 
can  nov/here  see  aught  of  joy  ^^'hen  any  one  may  meet  with 

^  Theseus,  not  Polyniccs. 

^  The  character  of  Antigone  ahvays  appears  in  the  most  amiable  light. 
Her  sentiments  breathe  at  once  of  the  purest  sisterly  love,  and  of  a  spirit 
01  forgiveness  almost  worthy  of  a  Christian. 


94  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [1220-^1251. 

more  thaii  his  ^vislies  require ;  but  death  is  the  aid  (of  our 
troubles)  that  ends  with  the  grave, ^  when  that  fate  hath  ap- 
peared without  nuptial  hymn,  without  lyre,  or  dance,  and 
death  to  close  the  scene,  o^ot  to  have  been  born  at  all  is  su- 
perior to  every  view  of  the  question ;  and  this  when  one  may 
have  seen  the  light,  to  return  thence  vvdience  he  came  as  quick- 
ly as  possible,  is  far  the  next  best.  For  wlien  youth  comes 
bringing  light  follies,  who  wanders  without  the  pale  of  many 
sorrows  ]-  v.diat  suffering  is  not  there  ?  murders,  factions,  strife, 
battle,  and  envy :  and  loathsome  old  age  hath  gained  the  last 
scene — impotent,  unsociable,  friendless  old  age,  Vvdiere  all  ills, 
v/orst  of  ills,  dwell  together.  In  which  state  this  wretched 
man,  not  I  alone,  as  some  promontoiy  exposed  to  the  north, 
is  beaten  on  all  sides  by  the  dashings  of  the  billows  in  the 
winter  storm  ;  thus  also  dreadful  calamities,  bursting  like 
waves  over  his  head,  ever  present  beat  on  him — some  indeed 
from  the  setting  of  the  sun,  and  some  from  his  rise,  and  some 
from  his  midday  beam,  and  some  from  the  cloud-dimmed  stars 
of  night.3 

Ant.  And  in  truth,  liitherward  to  us,  as  appears,  the 
stranger,  O  father !  unaccompanied,  at  least,  by  men,  makes 
his  way,  copiously  shedding  tears  from  his  eyes.* 

^  I  have  rendered  this  difficult  passage  according  to  Dindorfs  text. 
But  Wunder  reads  old  tret  Kopog,  and  joins  Molpa  laof  'A'i^og.  None  of 
the  present  explanations  seem  satisfactory,  e~LKOvpog  is  perhaps  required 
by  what  follows,  being  used  in  the  sense  of  "  levaraen."  Cf  Silius  xi. 
185,  "  nuilo  vos  invida  tanto  Armavit  Natura  bono,  quam  janua  mortis 
(Quod  patet)  e  vita  non  aqua,  exirc  potestas." — 13. 

-  Tic  t^o)  rov  7ro/.vfj.oxOog  elvai  l--'/.avr;6?]. — Scholiast. 

^  The  poet,  who  through  the  whole  of  this  chorus  has  been  comfortably 
obscure,  works  himself  up  by  the  end  of  it  into  absolute  mysticism.  It 
seems  like  an  imitation  of  the  worst  style  cf  yEschylus,  and  bears  very 
few  marks  of  the  correctness  and  good  taste  for  which  Sophocles  is  usu- 
ally distinguished. — Tr.  Some  commentators,  with  the  scholiast,  under- 
stand  vvxulv  drrb  'Fittuv  as  referring  to  the  Rlnpa^an  Mountains,  thereby 
pointing  to  the  northern  parts  of  the  heavens.  This  is  somewhat  favored 
by  the  preceding  words.  But  I  think  it  is  more  natural  to  take  the  whole 
passaoc  as  referring  to  the  troubles  that  befall  men  at  different  times  of 
life.  °Cf  vs.  1229-37,  ^sch.  Choeph.  G2,  rol^;  /dv  Iv  (^du,  Ta  6'  h 
fieTaixpi<f>  OKorov.  .  .  .rovg  6'  aapavroc  tjfi  vv^.  The  phrase  vvxlu^v  ap- 
pears to  denote  the  weak,  uncertain  light  cf  the  stars  struggling  through 
the  clouds  on  a  dark  night.  Cf  Booth,  de  Consol.  I.  metr.  vii.  «.  :  "  Nu, 
bibus  atris  Ccndiia  imllum  Fnnclere  possunt  Sidcra  lumen.'' — C. 

*  (laraKTi,  I'.ot  in  drops,  but  in  showers. 


1252— 1282.J  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  95 

(Kd.   Who  is  he? 

Ant.  Even  v/hom  wc  formerly  coiiccivcl  i;i  mind;  Folyni- 
ces  is  here  present. 

PoLYNiCES.  Woe  is  mo !  whut  shall  I  do  ]  "Whether,  sis- 
ters, shall  I  first  weep  over  my  own  misfortunes,  or  those 
that  I  behold  of  this  my  aged  father?  whom,  on  a  foreign 
soil,  I  have  found,  v.'ith  you  two  here,  cast  out,  clothed  in  such 
a  garment,  whose  loathsome  aged  filth  hath  fixed  itself  on  the 
old  man,  wasting  away  his  body,  and  on  his  sightless  head 
his  uncombed  hair  streams  to  the  wind ;  and  con";enial  to 
these,  it  appears,  he  has  the  nourishment  for  his  miserable 
stomach.  x\ll  which  things  I,  utterly  abandoned  wretch ! 
too  late  learn ;  and  I  call  you  to  witness  that  I  have  come, 
the  worst  of  men,  in  providing  for  your  support  :^  seek  not  to 
know  my  state  from  others.  But  since  over  every  work  is 
iMercy  joint  assessor  to  Jove  on  his  throne,  let  her,  O  father ! 
also  take  her  stand  bv  thee  ;  for  of  tranSiiressions  there  is 
remedy,  though  no  longer  recall.-  Why  are  you  silent? 
Speak  something,  O  father!  do  not  turn  away  from  me.  AVill 
you  not  answer  any  thing  to  me,  but  send  me  avr^ay,  di.  - 
honoring  me,  without  a  word,  nor  telling  at  Avhat  }'oa  au 
angry?  O  daughters  of  this  man,  and  sisters  mine,  \aX  do 
vou  at  least  attempt  to  awaken  our  father  s  words,  difficult  to 
gain,  and  devoid  of  affability,  that  he  may  not  thus,  at  any 
rate,  send  me  away  dishonored,  at  least  as  suppliant  of  the 
god,  replying  not  a  single  word. 

AxT.  Say,  oh  unhappy  man  1  yourself,  in  want  of  what  you 
are  present ;  for  oft  have  Vv'ords,  either  causing  some  delight 


'  Some  give  the  meaning  of  this  passage  thus  :  "I  call  you  to  witness 
that,  though  I  am  the  worst  of  men,  I  have  now  come  to  provide  for  your 
support."  This  is  plausible  enough ;  hut  what  immediately  follows, 
TovTo  firj  t'^  u/J.cju  Trvd/j,  makes  it  much  more  lilie  an  acknowledgment 
of  (Tuilt. 

-  This  is  another  disputed  point.  The  scholiast,  whom  I  follow,  ex- 
plains TzpoGOopd  as  meaning  iTravd/^Tj-i-ng ;  Brunck,  "  exprobatio  ;"  and 
Musgrave  supplies  rcJv  dyuv  after  Trpoagopu.  Remedia  quidcm  adsunt, 
sed  ea  admoverc  non  licet. — Tu.  I  think  that  Trpoodopd  can  not  bear  the 
sense  assigned  to  it  by  the  translator,  especially  as  the  scholiast's  gloss 
belongs  to  ukt].  Hermann  well  remarks  that  Polynices  says,  "priora 
pcccata  se  velle  corrigere.  non  augere  aliis."  But  to  gain  this  meaning, 
a  strong  adversative  particle  seems  to  be  required.  Perhaps  we  should 
read  TtpoaAopu,  yap  ova  trc,  or  -pQu(l)opa  6'  cvk  tart  dij. — B. 


96  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [1283—1314. 

or  displeasure,  or  ino\ing  somehow  to  pity,  give  some  speech 
to  the  silent.^ 

Pol.  But  I  will  speak  out  [for  ivcll  you  direct  me],  first 
making  the  god  himself  my  ally,  from  whose  altar  the  king 
of  this  land  raised  me  up  to  come  hither,  granting  both  to 
speak  and  to  hear  Avith  safe  departure ;  and  these  boons,  O 
stran"-ers,  I  should  wish  to  gain  from  you,  and  from  these  my 
sisters,  and  from  my  fatlier.  But  for  what  purpose  I  have 
come,  I  now  wish,  O  father,  to  tell  you.  I  have  been  driven 
forth  an  exile  from  my  native  soil  because  I  claimed,  being 
sprung  from  elder  birth,  to  sit  on  thy  imperial  throne. 
AVherefore,  Eteocles,  being  by  birth  the  younger,  drove  me 
out  of  the  land ;  neither  having  overcome  m.e  by  Cjuestion  of 
right,  nor  having  come  the  trial  of  hand  or  deed,  but  having 
persuaded  the  city :  of  which  misfortunes  I  account  your  im- 
precated vengeance  to  have  been  the  principal  cause ;  and 
then  from  prophets  also  I  hear  it  declared  in  this  way.  For 
wdicn  I  came  to  Dorio  Argos,  having  gained  Adrastus  as  my 
father-in-law,  I  procured  sworn  associjites  to  myself,  as  many 
as  are  styled  the  chiefs  of  the  Apian-  land  and  are  honored 
in  war,  in  order  that,  liaving  assembled  with  these  an  expe- 
dition, led  by  seven  spears,  against  Thebes,  I  might  either 
rightfully  fall,^  or  drive  forth  from  the  land  those  who 
wrought  these  deeds.  So  far,  so  good.  Why  in  truth  do  I 
now  chance  to  have  come  ?  To  thee,  O  father,  bringing  sup- 
pliant prayers  myself  both  for  myself  and  for  my  allies,  who 
now  with  seven  squadrons,  and  with  seven  spears,  encircle 
all  tlie  plain  of  Thebe  ;  such  as  is  Amphiaraus,  brandishing 
his  spear,  holding  the  first  place  in  v/ar,  and  the  first  in  the 

^  I  can  not  help  thinking  that  rivu  is  a  botch  to  the  verse,  and  that  we 
should  read  Trc/Jto^e  (jiuvyv  rolg  u(pG)v}]Toig  TTupor,  "  to  those  befort) 
silent."' — B. 

2  Apia  was  the  old  name  of  the  Peloponnesus.  The  origin  of  it  is  given, 
though  with  no  great  probabihty,  in  the  Suppiices  of  ..Eschylus.  268. 

^  Mu.'-.grave  takes  TzavdiKcog  along  with  cr/eipai; ;  and  Benedict  with 
lKj3dA0Liu.  There  is  no  great  occasion  for  forcing  it  so  violently  out  of 
its  natural  place.  Polynices  means  to  say  that  if  he  foil  in  attempting  to 
regain  his  own,  he  would  fall  at  least  in  a  rightful  cause. — Tr.  W  un- 
der would  interpret  TravdlKior,  "  radicitus  funditus,"  after  Doederlin,  which 
seems  the  idea  of  a  grammarian  rather  than  a  poet.  I  prefer  keeping 
the  chivalric  sense  of  rrarcV'/vwr,  although  I  will  s[;arc  my  reader  certain 
quotations  from  '•  King  Arthur"'  and  the  "  Fairy  Queen." — B. 


1315—1357.]  CEDIPUS  CCLOXEUS.  97 

paths  of  birds ;  and  the  second  is  an  JEtolmn,  Tydeus,  son 
of  JEncus;  and  the  third  is  Eteocles,  by  birth  an  Argive  ;  a 
fourth,  Hippomedon,  his  father  Talaus  hath  sent ;  the  fifth, 
Capaneus,  boasts  that  he  will  quickly  in  flames  lay  level  with 
the  gi'ound  the  city  of  Thebe ;  and  sixth,  the  Arcadian  Far- 
thenopa?u3  rushes  on,  bearing  the  name  of  his  mother,  in  for- 
mer time  long  a  virgin,  sprung  from  her  throes,  the  doughty 
son  of  Atalanta  ;  and  I,  thy  son  ;  if  not  thy  son,  but  sprung 
from  evil  doom,  yet  thine  at  least  by  name,  do  lead  the  fear- 
less host  of  Argos  against  Thebes  :  who  all  in  supplication  im- 
plore thee,  O  father,  by  these  thy  children,  and  by  thy  life,  to 
mitigate  thy  hea\y  wrath  against  me  proceeding  to  the  pun- 
ishment of  my  brother,  who  drove  me  out,  and  robbed  me. 
of  my  country.  For  if  there  be  any  faith  in  oracles,  with 
whomsoever  you  may  join,  to  these  the  god  declared  that  the 
victoiy  would  be.  Nov>',  by  our  native  fountains  and  oui 
idndred  gods,^  I  implore  you  to  obey  me,  and  to  yield  from 
your  purpose,  since  vre  are  j)Oor  and  strangers,  and  you  a 
stranger ;  and  you  and  I  live  paying  court  to  others,  having 
gained  by  lot  the  same  fortune.  Eut  he  at  home  a  king,  un- 
happy me !  laughing  in  common  at  us,  pampers  himself  up  : 
whom,  if  you  accord  with  my  inclinations,  I  will  overthrow 
with  slight  trouble  and  time ;  so  that,  bringing  you,  I  shall 
place  you  in  your  palace,  and  place  myself  there,  driving  out 
him  by  force.  And  this,  if  you  assent  to  my  w^ish,  it  is  al- 
lowed me  to  boast ;  but  without  you,  I  am  not  even  able  to 
be  saved. 

Cii.  Having  said,  oh  CEdipus  !  to  this  man,  for  the  sake  of 
him  that  sent  him,  what  is  expedient,  again  send  him  back. 

(Ed.  But  if  indeed,  ye  men,  Theseus,  the  ruler  of  the 
people  of  this  land,  had  not  chanced  to  send  him  hither  to 
me,  claiming  that  he  should  hear  my  words,  he  had  never  at 
any  time  heard  my  voice !  but  nov/  he  shall  depart  gifted  with 
that  honor,  and  having  heard  too  from  me  such  things  as 
will  never  cheer  his  life.  You  indeed,  oh  basest  of  men  I 
who  having  the  sceptre  and  the  throne  which  your  brother 
now  sways  in  Thebes,  yourself  drove  away  this  your  own 
fiither,  and  forced  him  to  be  an  exile  from  the  city,  and  to 

^  Nothing  can  be  more  beautiful  and  impressive  than  this  appeal :  even 
the  old  muddled  scholiast  is  aflected  by  it  •.  rraOTjrcKov  iari  to  rrpb^  na- 
Tp(ju)v  icpi]vcjv  opKovv,  0)^  el  tip?)  Trpof  tow  eKOpe^uvTuv  ce  vduTuv. 

E 


08  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [1358-1391. 

wear  tliesc  garments,  which  you  now  beholding,  weep,  when 
you  chfince  to  have  come  into  the  same  trouble  of  sorrows 
Avith  me.  But  these  things  are  not  to  be  wept  by  me,  but  to 
be  endured  while  I  live,  bearing  remembrance  of  you,  a 
iiiurdererJ  For  you  have  made  me  fellow  with  this  toil,  you 
have  driven  me  out,  and  by  your  work  I  wandering  beg  from 
others  my  daily  subsistence.  And  if  I  had  not  begotten 
these  as  nurses  to  myself,  these  daughters,  assuredly  1  had 
been  no  more,  for  thy  part ;  but  now  these  preserve  me,  these 
my  nurses,  these  men,  not  women,  to  assist  in  toil.  Ye  have 
been  born  from  some  other,  and  not  from  me.  "Wherefore 
the  divinity  beholds  you,  not  at  all  just  now,  as  if  shortly,^ 
indeed  these  squadrons  are  moved  against  the  city  of  Thebe. 
For  it  can  not  be  that  thou  shouldst  overthrow  that  city,  but 
first  thou  shalt  ftill  defiled  with  blood,  and  your  brother 
equally.  Such  curses  formerly  did  I  emit  against  you,^  and 
now  I  again  invoke  them  to  come  allies  to  me,  in  order  that 
ye  may  think  it  fit  to  reverence  parents,  and  may  not  treat 
them  with  dishonor,  if  such  ye  twain  have  sprung  from  a  blind 
father ;  for  these  viroins  did  not  thus.  AYhereibre  the  curses 
shall  possess  your  seat  and  your  throne,  if  Justice,  famed  of 
old,  jointly  preside  with  Jove  over  his  ancient  laws.  But  do 
you  go  to  ruin,  both  spurned  and  disowned  by  me,  basest  of 
the  base,  taking  with  you  these  curses,  which  on  you  I  in- 
voke, never  to  gain  possession  of  your  native  land  by  the 
spear,  and  never  to  return  to  hollow  Argos,  but  to  die  by  a 
brother's  hand,  to  slay  him  by  whom  you  were  driven  out. 
Such  curses  I  imprecate,  and  I  invoke  the  murky  parent 
gloom  of  Tartarus  to  receive  you  in  its   mansions  :*    and  I 

^  Polynices  ab  Gi]dipo  vidctur  consulto  ^ovevg  appellari,  ut  Bcquali  sc 
calamitate  a  fiiiis  suis  adfici  indicaret,  qua  ipse  ignarus  Laium  patrem 
suum  e  vita  sustulerit. — Benedict. 

"  That  is,  "  Fortune  will  then  frown  upon  you." 

^  The  scholiast  gives  rather  a  quizzical  account  of  these  former  curses 
of  Oedipus.  His  sons  had  been  in  the  practice,  when  they  sacrificed,  of 
sending  him  a  shoulder,  but  on  one  occasion  they  disappomted  the  old 
gentleman  of  his  favorite  part,  and  only  sent  him  a  thigh.  He  was  so 
enraged  at  them  for  their  joint  neglect,  that  he  uttered  those  curses  which 
entailed  ruin  and  death  on  their  heads. 

*  There  i.s  nothing,  even  in  the  curses  of  Lear,  more  strong  and  horri- 
ble than  this.  The  expressions  on  the  occasion  of  the  thigh  are  not 
handed  down  to  us  ;  but  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  they  were  r.ot  quite  sc 
bitter  as  this  second  and  improved  edition. 


1392—1428.]  CEDIPUS  COLOrsEUS.  99 

invoke  these  goddesses,  and  I  invoke  Mr.rs,  who  has  inspired 
you  with  this  dire  hatred.  And  having  heard  these  words, 
depart,  and  going,  announce  both  to  ail  th.e  people  of  Cadmus, 
and  at  the  same  time  to  your  faithful  allies,  that  Gi)dipus  has 
awarded  such  gifts  to  his  children. 

Cii.  Polynices,  I  do  not  congratulate  you  on  the  way  you 
have  passed;   and  nov>^  go  back  again  with  all  speed. 

PoL-  Woe  is  me  for  my  journey,  and  for  my  ill  success ! 
and  woe  is  me  for  my  associates !  For  v.'hat  an  issue  of  our 
expedition  then  have  vre  set  out  from  Argos?  Oh,  unhappy 
me !  such  a  one  as  it  is  neither  allowed  me  to  tell  to  any  of 
my  associates,  nor  to  turn  them  back,  but  remaining  silent, 
to  encounter  this  fate.  Oh  sisters !  sprung  from  the  same 
blood  with  me,  but  ye,  since  ye  hear  our  father  imprecating 
these  harsh  curses,  do  not  ye  at  least,  by  the  gods,  if  the 
curses  of  this  my  father  be  accomplished,  and  ye  have  any 
return  to  your  home,  do  not  ye  at  least,  by  the  gods,  treat 
me  with  dishonor,  but  lay  me  in  the  tomb,  and  with  funeral 
rites.  And  praise,  which  you  now  carry  oil  from  this  man 
for  the  things  in  which  ye  labor,  you  wdll  gain  another  no 
less  from  your  ministry  to  me. 

Ant.  Polynices,  I  beseech  you  in  something  to  obey  me. 

Pol.  In  what  sort  of  thing,  dearest  Antigone  ?     Say. 

Ant.  Turn  back,  as  quickly  as  possible  at  least,  your  arma- 
ment to  Argos,  and  do  not  destroy  both  yourself  and  the  city. 

Pol.  But  it  is  not  possible.  For  how  could  I  again  lead 
the  same  army,  hax'ino;  once  trembled?^ 

Ant.  And  v.diat  need  is  there,  O  youth,  again  to  give  w^ay 
to  your  anger  %  What  gain  results  to  you,  having  overthrown 
your  native  country? 

Pol.  It  is  base  to  fiy,  and  that  I,  the  elder,  should  thus  be 
lauglied  at  by  my  brother. 

Ant.  Do  you  see,  then,  how  you  directly  bear  to  fulfiilment 
his  oracles,  who  predicts  to  you  death  by  each  other's  hands? 

Pol.  Yes,  he  wills  it  so,^  but  vre  must  not  }aeld. 

Ant.  Woe  is  me,  unhappy  woman  !  But  who  will  dare  to 
follow  you,  hearing  the  prophecies  of  this  man,  such  as  he 
has  delivered? 

^  Sse  Vv'under. — B. 

2  So  Hermann,  more  forcibly  than  according  to  the  ordinary  interpret- 
ation :   "  lie  predicts  it."     The  predictions  were  aheady  known. — B. 


100  (EDIPUS  COLOXEUS.  [1429—1544. 

Pol.  AVe  Avill  not  announce  Avliat  is  bad,  since  it  is  the  part 
of  a  good  general  to  speak  of  success,  not  failure. 

Ant.  Thus  then,  O  youth,  are  these  things  decreed  by  you. 

Pol.  Yes,  and  do  i;ot  indeed  restrain  me.  l^ut  to  me  this 
expedition  will  be  a  care,  though  consigned  to  misfortune  and 
ruin  by  my  father  and  his  Furies.  And  to  you  may  Jove 
grant  a  propitious  way,  if  ye  perform  these  things  to  me  in 
death  ;  since  to  me  in  life,  at  least,  you  will  not  again  have 
it  in  your  power.  And  now  let  me  go,  and  fare  ye  well,  for 
ye  never  will  more  behold  me  alive. ^ 

Ant.   O  unhappy  me  ! 

Pol.  Do  not  mourn  for  me. 

Ant.  And  who,  O  brother!  would  net  groan  over  you, 
rushing  to  evident  destruction  ? 

Pol.  If  it  be  fated  I  shall  die. 

Ant.  Do  not  you,  sure  you  will  not,  but  be  persuaded  by 
me.-  . 

Pol.  Do  not  persuade  me  what  is  not  fitting. 

Ant.  Unhappy  then  am  I,  if  I  be  deprived  of  you. 

Pol.  These  things  rest  with  the  divinity,  to  lake  place  in 
this  way  or  that  way.  But  I  pray  the  gods  that  ye  may 
never  meet  with  evils,  for  ye  are  in  all  respects  unworthy  to 
be  unfortunate. 

Ch.  These  nevv^  evils  have  come  anew^  upon  me,  new  evils 
of  heavy  fate  from  the  sightless  stranger,  unless  fate  be  coming 
somewhere^ — for  I  can  not  say  that  any  decree  of  the  gods  is 
in  vain.     Time  regards,  ever  regards  these  things,*  sometimes 

^  It  v;ould  appear  from  this  expression  that  Antigor.c,  in  the  agony  of 
sisterly  love,  had  thrown  her  arms  around  her  ill-fated  brother,  and  en- 
deavored thus  to  restrain  him,  when  her  tears  and  her  prayers  ^Ye^c  of  no 
avail.  The  whole  scene  is  exquisitely  tender  and  beautiful,  and  presents 
a  fine  contrast  to  the  unnatural  sentiments  and  stern  curses  which  CEdipus 
had  just  before  uttered. 

^  Such  is  the  only  way  in  which  the  force  of  the  ys,  in  this  place,  can 
properly  be  given. 

^  I  have  translated  this  phrase  el  ri  fiolpa  pi  layxdvei  as  an  abrupta 
orat.io.  The  Chorus,  alarmed  by  the  lowering  sky,  and  inspired  with 
some  uncertain  presage,  speak  of  impending  evil,  yet  scarce  kj^.owing 
whether  that  fate  awaits  them  or  tlieir  hapless  guest.  I  think  that  an 
accusative  is  omitted  out  of  a  dread  of  m.entioning  the  death  of  Oedipus 
clearly.  This  view  of  the  presage  is  conlirnied  by  the  following  verses. 
See,  however,  Plermann,  who,  with  the  scholiast,  plainly  refers  it  to  fate 
overJaking  QOdipur;. — B. 

*  There  U  mucli  ditliculty  in  these  lines,  especially  in  ^-ct,  which  can 


1455—1485.]  (EDIPUS  CCILOll^Strk  \ ;  101 


■>  -,  ■> 


adverse,  yet  aGfaiii  uplifting;  tliera  eacL  day/,  Hie" firmament 
hath  thundered,  O  Jove!      :       ;;-'^  ',      '  l"    ',  ,'  ^  °^  j  ^;  "^  ,» ^  ^ 

(Ed.  O  children!  chiktren  !  hbw,*iF  there  be  here  any 
dweller  in  the  place,  would  he  send  hitlier  the  all-excellent 
Theseus?! 

Ant.  But  what,  father,  is  the  plea  upon  which  you  summon 
him  ? 

GiId.  This  winged  thunder  of  Jove  will  straightway  bear  me 
to  the  shades ;  but  send  with  all  speed?" 

CiT.  Behold  a  mighty  unspeakable  peal,  sent  by  Jove,  is 
crashing  along.  Terror  hath  crept  along  the  summits  of  the 
hairs  of  my  head.  I  crouch  in  spirit,  for  the  lightning  of 
heaven  is  again  blazing.  What  issue  indeed  will  it  produce  ? 
But  I  fear ;  for  never  does  it  rush  from  heaven  vainly  or  with- 
out consequences.     O  mighty  firmament !     O  Jove  ! 

G'Id.  Oil  my  children,  the  predicted  end  of  life  hath  come  to 
me,  and  there  is  no  longer  escape  from  it. 

AxT.  How  do  you  know  it?  by  what  do  you  conjecture  it?^ 

CEd.  I  know  it  well ;  but  let  some  one,  going  as  quickly  as 
possible,  send  hither  to  me  the  king  of  the  land. 

Cii.  Oh !  oh !  Behold  how  terribly  again  the  piercing^ 
ro:ir  rolls  around  us.  Be  merciful,  oh  divinity,  be  merciful,  if 
you  chance  to  bear  some  dark  doom  to  my  mother  earth :  and 
may  I  meet  with  a  man  propitious ;  nor  having  seen  an  ac- 
cursed one,^  may  I  anyhow  reap  a  bootless  favor.  King  Jove, 
to  thee  I  spec'^k. 

scarcely  stand  for  ug,  as  Wundcr  supposes.  I  think  that  it  must  be  cor- 
rupt, and  that  some  word  equivalent  to  tad'  ore  or  ottov  has  dropped  out 
in  its  stead.     As  it  is,  I  have  chiefly  followed  Hermann. — B. 

'  CEdipus  immediately  perceives  that  his  hour  is  come.  Early  in  the 
play  he  mentions  that  he  expected  such  a  sign  : 

27]/ie7.a  6'  ij^eiv  rtjx^d'  £[xoi  TrapTiyyva, 

'H  GELGtluV,  1]  j3pOVTTJV  Tiv'  ?/  Aiof  CE'kag. 

This  circumstance  is  in  itself  productive  of  a  sublime  and  almost  appal- 
ling sensation  ;  and  the  play  proceeds  from  this  point  to  the  catastrophe 
in  a  strain  of  unequaled  grandeur  and  effect. 

^  Pindar,  Nem.  xi.  43,  aviiSa/.elv  Aiav  evjuaptg.  Nicolaus  Damasc. 
M.S.  fol.  3,  av/Uj3d/J.ei  r/'/v  rod  ovelpov  <p?j/itTjv. — B. 

^  Aia-pvaiog,  "penetrans  ;"  by  which  may  either  be  expressed  the  re- 
verberation of  sound  through  the  sky,  or  the  Chorus  may  mean  that  the 
thunder  thrills,  if  we  may  so  say,  through  them. 

*  Since  d/Mcrog  is  akin  to  aAuGTup,  and  we  meet  with  Tzarpbr  tiidvrov 
'A/M7T0V  al/ia  in  vs.  1G71,  it  is  strange  that  the  translator  should  hava 


10-2  CEDIPUS  COLOXEUS.  [1486— 1  Hi 7. 

»'(Ep<  Ig  ^10  ^att  ^i^art  .Will  he  yet,  my  cliilJren,  find  me 
a'iiVt',:'a''id  possi'ssed  of  my  senses  f 

Ant.  And  what  secret  trust  Avould  you  wish  to  commit  to 
his  breast  ? 

(Ed.  In  return  for  the  favors  I  have  received,  to  give  him 
the  consummation  of  the  favor  I  promised. 

Cii.  llo,  ho,  my  son !  come,  come,  if  at  the  extremity  of 
tlie  beach  you  are  con^rating  the  sacrificial  altar  to  Neptune, 
god  of  the  sea,  come  ;^ir  the  stranger  deems  it  right  to  return 
to  you,  and  to  the  city,  and  to  his  friends  the  just  favors  he  has 
received.     Hasten,  rush,  oh  king! 

Tii.  What  common  uproar  again  resounds  from  you,  clearly 
proceeding  from  yourselves,  and  distinctly  from  the  stranger  ? 
Has  some  bolt  of  Jove,  or  shower  of  hail  burst  upon  you  ?  for 
one  may  conjecture  eveiy  thing  of  this  kind,  when  the  god 
raises  the  storm. 

(Hd.  Oh  king !  you  have  appeared  to  me  \\dshing,  and  some 
god  gave  you  the  happy  fortune  of  this  coming. 

Til.  But  what  new  thinjx,  O  son  of  Laius,  has  ajiain  arisen? 

CEd.  This  is  the  crisis  of  life  to  me,^  and  I  wish  to  die  with- 
out deceiving  you  and  this  city  in  what  I  promised. 

Tii.  On  what  certain  sign  of  death  do  you  depend  ? 

Qi!d.  The  gods,  themselves  their  heralds,  announce  it  to  me, 
being  false  to  none  of  the  previously-concerted  signs. 

Tii.  How  sayest  thou,  old  man,  that  these  things  are  un- 
folded? 

Q^D.  The  frequent  continuous  thunderings,  and  the  many 
bolts  flashing  from  the  hand  in\'incible. 

Th.  You  persuade  me,  for  I  see  you  predicting  many  things, 
and  these  not  of  false  report ;  and  tell  me  what  it  is  fitting 
to  do. 

rendered  it  "  not  to  be  forrrottcn  ;  for  the  sentiment,  liy  ^^'llich  those 
who  held  communion  v.ith  the  impious  were  supposed  to  sutler  the 
penalty  of  their  crimes,  was  very  common.  Cf.  Hesiod,  tpy.  238, 
TToTiAuKi  Kol  ^vfiTzaaa  'no'kig  Kanov  dvSpug  d7r?jvpa,  "Ocrig  lUurpaivei  Kal 
<lTda6a?M  ^iTJXCivuarai.  Tolcnv  6'  ovpavddev  fir/  ETT?/yay£  TzJjua  Kpoviuv 
Aifiijv  ojiov  Kal  ?Mi/i6v,  dnrocpdcvi'dovGC  di  ?.aol.  Ovde  -^vvcuKeg  TtKTOvcjiv, 
fiivvdovGt  di  oIkgl.  Babrias,  Fab.  117,  hug  yup  daejiovg  i/j.iSeidijKdrog 
TTAoiG),  Ilo2.?uOvg  GOV  av7(7j  jiTjdtv  alriovg  6vr/CK£LV.  Sec  Comm.  on  Hor. 
Od.  i'ii.  2. 

^  Or,  "  ATy  life  is  vcrfring  to  its  close."  The  meaning  of /5o-?/  is  taken 
from  the  turn  of  the  balance. 


1518— 155G.]  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  103 

QP.D.  I  v/ill  teach  you,  O  son  of  ^^geu?,  things  which, 
uninjured  by  age,  shall  be  stored  up  to  this  city.  I  myself, 
untouched  by  a  guide,  Avill  straightv/ay  point  out  the  spot 
where  it  behooves  me  to  die.  This  never  tell  to  any  mortal, 
neither  where  it  is  concealed,  nor  in  what  place  it  lies,  since 
it  will  ever  provide  you  a  defense  against  your  neighbors, 
superior  to  many  shields  and  to  foreign  spears.  ISut  the 
things  that  are  sacred  and  are  not  uttered  in  words,  you 
yourself  shall  learn  when  you  come  tA||e  alone ;  since  neither 
would  I  declare  them  to  any  one  of  tnese  citizens,  nor  to  my 
children,  though  I  love  them.  But  do  you  yourself  always 
preserve  them,  and  when  you  come  to  the  end  of  life,  reveal 
them  to  the  foremost  in  power  alone,  and  let  him  ever  show 
them  to  his  successor ;  and  thus  you  Avill  inhabit  this  city 
unhurt  by  the  men  that  sprung  from  the  dragon's  teeth.^ 
But  numberless  cities,  even  though  one  rule  them  well,  easily 
give  way  to  insolence ;  for  the  gods  full  well,  though  late, 
pay  regard  when  any  one,  despising  holy  things,  may  betake 
himself  to  phrensy ;  which  do  you,  O  son  of  -3^geus,  be  un- 
willing to  suffer.  I  instruct,  however,  one  who  knows  such 
things.  But  let  us  now  go  to  the  spot,  for  a  present  impulse 
from  the  god  urges  me  on,  nor  yet  let  us  feel  awed.  Oh,  my 
daughters,  this  way  folloAv  me,  for  I  in  turn  have  appeared  a 
new  guide  to  you,  as  ye  were  to  your  father.  Go,  and  do 
not  touch  me,  but  suffer  me  myself  to  find  out  the  sacred 
tomb  where  it  is  fated  for  me  to  be  ensepulchred  beneath 
this  soil.  This  way,  hither,  this  way  advance,  for  this  v/ay 
there  is  leading  me  on  Hermes  the  conductor,-  and  she,  the 
goddess  of  the  shades.^  O  liglit,  rayless  to  me,  formerly 
somewhere,  once  on  a  time  thou  wert  mine,  and  now,  for 
the  last  time,  my  body  touches  thee ;  for  now^  I  go  to  conceal 
the  close  of  mv  life  in  the  shades.  But,  O  dearest  of  friends ! 
may  both  you,  and  this  land,  and  your  servants,^  be  blessed 
of  heaven,  and  in  your  success  remember  mj  death,  ever 
prospering. 

Ch.  If  it  be  lawful  for  me  to  worship  with  prayers  the 

*  A  designation  of  the  Thebans,  derived  from  their  fabulous  origin. 
^  That  is,  the  conductor  of  the  dead. 

"  Proserpine. 

*  The  Athenip.ji  people. 


101  CEDIPL'y  COLOXEi'S  [1557—1594. 

unseen  goddes?!,^  and  tliee,  0  Pluto,  Pluto,  king  of  those  who 
d'vvell  in  night,  I  beseech  you  that  neither  with  pain,  nor 
in  a  painful  dcatli  of  jjitter  suffering,  the  stranger  accomplish 
his  way  to  tlie  plain  of  the  dead  below  the  earth  that  incloses 
all  mortals,  and  to  the  Stygian  mansions.  For  many  suifer- 
ings,  ;i;tI  those  undeservedly,  having  come  upon  you,-  may 
the  just  divinity  again  exalt  you.  O  ye  goddesses  below  the 
earth,  and  form  of  the  invincible  monster,  who,  they  say,  has 
his  lair  by  the  well-pplished  gates,^  and  whom  fame  ever 
reports  to  gi-owl  from  his  den,  the  unconquerable  guardian  of 
Orcus  ....  whom,  O  son  of  Earth  and  Tartarus,  I  implore 
gently  to  meet  the  stranger  advancing  to  the  infernal  plains 
of  the  dead  ;  thee  I  invoke,  thee,  who  never  slumberest. 

Messenger.  Ye  citizens,  I  may  in  very  brief  words  express 
to  you  that  (Pldipus  is  dead:  but  what  was  done,  neither  is 
there  language  to  relate  shortly,  nor  the  circumstances,  as 
many  as  took  place  there.  ^ 

Cii.  For  has  the  wretched  man  perished? 

Mess.  Be  assured  that  he  has  forever  bid  farewell  to  life. 

Ch.  How?  Did  the  unhappy  man  die  by  a  doom  sent  from 
heaven,  and  void  of  pain  ? 

Mess.  This  already  is  lit  even  to  excite  astonishment.  For 
how  indeed  he  went  hence,  you  too,  being  somewhere  present, 
know,  no  one  of  his  friends  acting  as  guide,  but  he  himself  lead- 
ing the  way  to  us  all.  But  when  he  came  to  the  threshold 
of  the  steep  descent,  firm-rooted  in  earth  with  brazen  steps, 
he  stood  in  one  of  the  many-dividing  ways  near  the  hollow 
caves,  where  lie  the  ever  faithful  pledges  of  Theseus  and  Piri- 

^  "  Cur  deo3  infernos  adoraturus  veniam  quasi  prsefatur  ?  An  quod 
Pluto  Kij^ed  re  GToi'axur  -'  t/Mxe  (ut  ait  Stesichoras)  non  preces  1" — Mus- 
grave. 

^  Murav.  Having  come  vainly,  because  there  \%-as  no  occasion  fov 
thsm  by  prior  guilt. 

^  The  gates  of  the  infernal  regions  appear  to  be  called  well-polished,  or, 
more  literally,  polished  by  many,  from  the  crowds  that  constantly  made 
their  entrance.     We  have  something  similar  in  Lucretius  : 

" turn,  portas  propter,  ahena 

8igna  manus  dextras  obtendunt  adtenuari 

Sffipo  salutantum  tactu,  praeterquc  meantum.'" — Lib.  I.  S17. — Tr. 
Wunder  reado  'rro?,v^Ei>Oic  from  Musgrave's  conjecture. — B. 

*  If  so  very  nuic'i  took  ])la(c  daring  the  time  that  the  Chorus  was  sing- 
in::  this  stave,  we  are  afraid  that  one  of  the  unities,  to  which  the  Oleics 
piid  sv;cli  altention,  must  have  been  not  a  little  violated 


iO'Jo— 1632.]  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  105 

tlious.^  Standing  between  Avliicli  place,  antl  the  Thorician 
rock,  and  the  hollow  thorn  and  the  sepulchre  of  stone,  he  sat 
him  dov/n.  Then  lie  loosed  his  squalid  garments ;  and  next, 
having  called  on  his  daughters,  he  ordered  them  from  some 
place  to  bring  water  for  the  bath,  and  libations  from  the  run- 
ning stream.  And  they,  going  to  the  conspicuous  hill  of  the 
verdant  Ceres,  performed  in  a  short  time  these  injunctions  to 
their  father ;  and  with  lavers  and  with  robes  they  decked  him 
out  in  the  vv^ay  that  is  ritual.  And  when  he  had  satisfaction 
in  every  thing  being  done,  and  there  was  nothing  any  longer 
undone  of  what  he  desired,  Jove  indeed  thundered  beneath  the 
earth,  and  the  virgins  were  frozen  with  horror  as  they  heard 
it ;  and  fiiUing  on  the  knees  of  their  father,  they  wept,  nor  did 
they  cease  from  beatings  of  the  breast  and  lengthened  groans. 
But  he,  as  he  suddenly  heard  their  bitter  cries,  folding  his 
hands  over  them,  said,  "  O  children,  there  is  no  longer  to  you 
this  day  a  f\\ther ;  for  all  that  vras  mine  has  perished,  and  you 
no  longer  shall  have  the  difhcult  toil  of  supporting  me  :  griev- 
ous it  vras,  I  know,  my  daughters ;  but  yet  one  word  does 
away  with  all  these  troubles ;  for  you  enjoyed  love  from  no 
one  more  than  from  me,  of  whom  deprived,  you  will  now 
spend  the  remainder  of  your  life."  Thus  clinging  lo  one 
another,  they  all,  with  sobs,  wept.  But  when  they  came  to 
the  end  of  their  Availings,  and  no  cry  arose,  silence  indeed 
prevailed ;  but  the  voice  of  some  one  on  a  sudden  loudly  call- 
ed him,  so  that  all,  trembling  with  terror,  instantly  raised  up- 
rio'ht  tlieir  hairs ;  for  the  eod  oft  in  various  ways  summons 
liim  ;  '•  PIo  you  !  ho  you  CEdipus  !  why  linger  we  to  depart  ? 
Long  since  there  is  delay  on  your  part."  But  he,  when  he 
perceived  he  Vv^as  summoned  by  the  god,  calls  on  Theseus,  the 
kin^  of  the  land,  to  come  to  him  ;  and  when  he  came,  said, 
"  O  beloved  friend,  pledge  to  my  children  the  former  faith  of 

^  Theseus  had  made  a  solemn  league  of  friendship  with  Pirithous  on 
this  spot,  and  agreed  to  accompany  him  to  the  lower  regions  to  assist  him 
in  recovering  Proserpine,  the  object  of  his  passionate  love,  from  the 
clutches  of  Pluto.  The  love  and  the  friendship  were  alike  ill-starred. 
Theseus  was  separated  from  his  heroic  companion  by  an  earthquake,  and 
with  difficulty  regained  the  light ;  but  Pirithous  was  detained,  and  con- 
demned to  eternal  darkness  and  chains. 

" amatorem  trecents 


Pirithoum  cohibent  Cct3naB."' — Horace. 
E  2 


lOG  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [1633— 1G38. 

your  right  hand  ;i  and  ye,  my  daughters,  to  him  ;  and  solemn- 
ly ratiiy  that  }ou  will  never  willingly  betray  them,  but  will 
always  perform  whatsoever  you  conceive  advantageous  to 
them."  And  he,  like  a  noble  man  without  lamentations,  prom- 
ised an  oath  to  perform  these  things  to  the  stranger.  And 
when  he  had  done  this,  Q^^lipus,  touching  Avith  unseeing  hands 
his  children,  says,  ''  Oh  children  twain,  it  is  necessary  that, 
supporting  generous  resolutions  in  your  minds,  you  should 
depart  from  these  places,  nor  claim  to  see  what  is  not  laA\ful 
to  see,  nor  to  hear  those  speaking  such  things.^  But  depart 
as  quickly  as  possible,  only  let  king  Theseus  be  present  to 
learn  what  is  done."  So  much  we  all  heard  him  utter,  and 
groaning  with  abundant  tears,  we  departed  along  with  the 
virgins ;  and  when  we  had  gone  away,  turning  in  a  short  time, 
we  saw  the  man  no  longer,  indeed,  any  where  present,  but  the 
king  himself,  holding  his  hand  over  his  brow  to  shade  his 
eyes,  as  if  some  horrible  sight  of  fear  had  been  disclosed,  nor 
what  was  endurable  to  look  upon.^  A  little  afterward,  and 
in  no  long  time,  we  see  him  paying  adoration  to  earth  and  to 
Olympus,  seat  of  the  gods,  in  the  same  prayer.  But  Theseus : 
for  neither  did  any  bolt  of  the  god,  wmged  with  lightning, 
destroy  him,  nor  tempest  raised  from  ocean  at  that  moment ; 
but  it  was  either  some  messenger  from  the  gods,  or  sunless 
gap^  of  the  shades  beneath  the  earth,  mercifully  opening  to  re- 
ceive him ;  for  the  man  is  not  to  be  lamented,  nor  was  he  dis- 
missed from  life  wretched  with  disease,  but,  if  any  other  of 
mortals,  worthy  of  admiration.  And  if  I  seem  to  speak  not 
being  in  my  senses,  I  would  not  yield  to  those  to  Avhom  I  ap- 
peared deprived  of  sense. 

Ch.  But  Avhere  are  his  children  and  the  friends  who  con- 
ducted them? 

Mess.  They  are  not  fir  off,  for  the  sounds  of  mourning  not 


of  me. 


^  "  The  faith  which  I  have  already  tried  and  proved  in  your  protection 

me." 

^  We  are  afraid  this  would  operate  with  most  women  as  a  strono-  in- 
ducement to  disregard  the  advice. 

^  The  picture  to  the  eye  is  here  admirable,  and  afTords  one  of  the  best 
examples  of  the  author's  graphic  power.  The  whole  of  the  description, 
indeed,  is  at  once  interesting  and  sublime,  and  has  obtained  peculiar 
praises  from  the  highest  critical  source — the  pen  of  Longinus. 

*  k50  Wunder,  from  the  Scholia,  for  aAv~i]Tov. — B. 


1669—1704]  CEDIPIJS  COLOXEUS.  107 

indistinct    signify   to    us   that   tliey   arc   approaching    hither- 
ward. 

Ant.  Woe,  woe !  alas !  'tis  not  for  us  hapless^  to  mourn 
in  this,  or  that  respect,  the  accursed  kindred  blood  of  our  fa- 
ther, for  whom  we  firmly  bore  many  toils  in  many  places,  but 
in  this  last  shall  endure  incalculable  calaraitiegj  seeing  and  suf- 
fering them. 

Ch.  What  is  it  ^ 

Ant.  Ye  may  conceive  it,  my  friends, 

Ch.  Is  he  gone  ? 

Ant.  Ycs,  as  you  would  feel  most  desirous  he  should.  For 
why?  whom  neither  Mars  nor  ocean  met,  but  tbe  unseen 
plains,  bearing  him  with  them,  swallowed  in  a  certain  myste- 
rious fate.  Unhappy  woman  that  I  am !  for  to  us  has  the 
night  of  destruction  come  over  our  eyes ;  for  how,  wandering 
either  to  some  foreign  land,  or  over  the  billows  of  the  deep, 
shall  we  gain  life's  hard-earned  subsistence  ? 

Ism.  I  know  not.  May  bloody  Pluto  bear  me  down,  to  die 
unhappy  along  -v^'itli  my  aged  father ;  since  to  me  at  least,  the 
life  to  come  is  not  worth  living  for, 

Cii.  Oh  ye  twain,  best  of  children,  it  is  fit  to  bear  that  well 
which  comes  from  God,  nor  do  ye  too  much  inflame  your 
grief:  your  lot  is  not  to  be  found  fault  with. 

Ant.  There  was  then  some  desire  even  of  miseries ;  for 
that  which  is  by  no  means  pleasant,  Avas  pleasant  when,  at 
least,  I  held  him  in  my  arms.  Oh  father!  oh  dear  father! 
oh  thou  who  art  enveloped  forever  in  darkness  beneath  the 
earth,  neither  in  your  old  age  were  you  ever  unbeloved  by  me, 
nor  shall  be. 

Ch.  He  has  fared — ■ 

^  The  scholiast  has  here  very  rashly  ventured  on  a  piece  of  criticism. 
His  words  are  tu  f^e|//f  rod  dpuuarog  ovk  eanv  evKa~a6p6vrjTa.  We 
ditier  with  him  toto  coclo.  The  play  ought  to  have  ended  with  the  speech 
of  the  messenger,  and  to  have  closed,  as  the  interest  closes,  with  the  sub- 
lime catastrophe  there  so  magnificently  described.  The  vvhinings  of  the 
girls  after  this  could  not  fail  to  appear  feeble  ;  and  to  complete  this  nat- 
ural disadvantage  under  which  they  labor,  the  poet  has  contrived  to  render 
them  most  intolerably  stupid.  Some,  however,  may  be  of  the  pathetic 
scholiast's  opinion  ;  and  to  them  we  willingly  make  a  present  of  ai,  al, 
^Ev,  ^ef',  and  Co. — Tr.  There  is  the  same  anti-climax,  or  rather  tedious 
'•'  tag,"'  to  the  Persae  of  ^Eschylus,  and  the  King  Kcnry  the  Eighth  of 
Shakespeare.  But  the  Greeks,  as  well  as  the  modern  dramatists,  often 
fell  victims  to  "  legitimate"  five-act  measure. — B. 


108  CEDIPUS  COLONEUS.  [1704—1743. 

Ant.  He  lias  fiired  as  lie  wished. 

Ch.  And  how  ? 

Ant.  As  he  desired,  he  has  died  in  a  foreign  land,  and  he 
has  an  ever-shaded  bed  beneath  the  earth,  nor  has  he  left 
riionrning  without  tears;  forever,  oh  lather,  this  my  weep- 
in^  eye  laments  you,  nor  know  I  how  it  is  possible  for  me, 
wretched,  to  banish  such  great  afiiiction.  Alas!  you  ought  not 
to  liave  died  in  a  foreign  land,  but  thus  you  have  died  deserted 

by  me. 

Ism.  O  unhappy  me !  what  desolate,  distressing  fate  again 
awaits  me  and  thee,  dear  sister,  thus  bereft  of  a  father ! 

Cii.  But  since  he  has  happily  at  least,  dear  virgins,  closed 
the  term  of  life,  cease  from  this  sorrow,  for  no  one  is  a  difficult 
prey  tc  misfortune. 

Ant.  Let  us  haste,  loved  sister,  back. 
Is:>i.  That  we  may  do  Avhat  ? 
Ant.  a  desire  possesses  me — 
Ism.  What? 

Ant.  To  see  the  sepulchral  home — 
Ism.  Of  whom  1 

Ant.   Of  our  father.     Oh,  unhappy  me ! 
Ism.  But  how  is  this  lawful  ?     Do  you  not  see — 
Ant.  Why  do  you  reprove  this  ? 
Ism.  And  this,  how — ^ 
Ant.  Why  this  so  much  again — » 

IsM.  He  has  fallen  unburied,  and  apart  from  eveiy  one. 
An't.  Conduct  me,  and  then  slay  me. 

Is.^r.  Woe,  woe  is  me,  unhappy !  Where,  in  truth,  hence- 
forth  shall  I,  thus  desolate  and  in  want,  endure  my  wretched 
existence  ? 

Cii.  Dear  maids,  fear  nothing. 
Ant.  But  wlicre  shall  I  fly  ? 

Cii.  Even  before  there  has  escaped — 

Ant.  From  what  ? 

Cii.  Your  state  from  flilling  into  misery. 

Ant.  I  think — 

Cii.  What,  in  truth,  do  you  over  wisely  think. 

Ant.  I  know  not  hoAV  we  shall  return  home. 

Cii.  Do  not,  then,  inquire  into  it. 

'  The  meaning  of  these  two  or  three  speeches  is  obviously  destroyed  by 
corruption,  or  rather  mutilation,  of  the  text. 


1743-1780.]  CEDirJS  COLONEUS.  109 

Ant.  Trouble  possesses  me. 

Cii.  And  formerly  did. 

Ant.  At  one  time  indeed  it  advances  farther,  and  at  anoth- 
er passes  all  bounds. 

Ch.  Ye  have  tlien  obtained  for  your  lot  a  vast  sea  [of 
troubles]. 

Ant.  Yea,  yea.^ 

Cii.  I  too  assent  to  it. 

Ant.  Alas  1  alas  !  where  shall  Ave  go,  O  Jove  ?  for  to  v/hat 
hope  does  the  god  now,  at  least,  incite  us? 

Theseus.  Cease,  virgins,  from  your  dirges,  for  in  those 
cases  Avhere  joy  at  least  is  stored  up  beneath  the  earth,  we 
ouo"ht  not  to  mourn :  for  there  would  be  indifrnation  of  heaven. 

Ant.  O,  son  of  ^'Egcus !  we  fall  dovrn  before  thee. 

Th.  To  grant  wliat  boon,  ye  maids? 

Ant.  We  vv'ish  with  our  ovrn  eves  to  behold  the  tomb  of 
our  father. 

Tii.  But  it  is  not  lawful. 

Ant.  How  sayest  thou,  king,  ruler  of  Athens? 

Til.  He  forbade  me,  virgins,  that  any  one  of  mortals  should 
approach  those  places,  or  address  the  sacred  sepulchre  whicli 
he  tenants  ;  and  he  said,  if  I  did  this,  that  I  should  always 
gloriously  possess  this  land  uninjured.  These  words  of  ours, 
therefore,  Jove  heard,  and  he  that  hears  every  thing,  the  oath 
of  Jove. 

Ant.  If  these  things  are  agreeable  to  him,  they  will  suffice 
to  us ;  but  send  us  to  Ogygian  Thebes,  if  we  may  in  any  way 
prevent  the  slaughter  coming  on  our  brothers. 

Tii.  I  will  do  this,  and  every  thing  at  least  which  I  am 
about  to  perform  advantageous  to  you,  and  gratifpng  to  him 
below  the  earth,  who  is  just  gone ;  for  it  does  not  befit  me  to 
v/eary  in  this  task. 

Ch.  But  cease,  nor  any  lon";er  awake  the  voice  of  sorrow : 
for  these  things  completely  have  ratification. 

^  These  two  Hnes  are  omitted  by  Dind.  a-cl  V.'u-dcr. — B. 


[1-4. 


E  L  E  C  T  Pt  A.' 


OncsTDG,  in  company  with  his  tutor  and  Pylades,  comes  to  Argos,  and, 
having  deceived  iEgisthus  and  Clytemnestra  with  the  report  that  he 
had  been  killed  by  falling  from  his  chariot  in  the  Olympic  games,  he 
reveals  his  being  yet  alive  to  his  sister,  who  had  bewailed  him  as  dead, 
and  slays  the  two  murderers,  while  vainly  exulting  in  his  own  supposed 
end.— B. 


DRAMATIS  PERSON.E. 


Attendant. 
Orestes. 
Electra. 
Chorus. 


Chuysothemis. 
Clytemnestra. 

.^GISTHUS. 


Attendant.  O  son  of  Agamemnon,  who  once  commanded 
the  army  at  Troy,^  now  mayest  thou  here  present  behold  those 
things  for  which  thou  wert  ever  eagerly  longing  ;  for  this  is 
the  ancient  Argos,^  which  thou  didst  desire,  the  grove  of  the 

^  This  play  was  translated  into  Latin  by  Attilius.  Cic.  de  Fin.  I.  c.  ii. 
^  5.  ^^  A  quibus  tantum  disscniio,  ut,  quum  Sophocles  vcl  optimc  scripscrit 
Eleclram,  tamen  viale  conversam  Altilii  Icgcndam  putcm  ;  de  quo  Licinius, 
ferreum  scripLorem ;  verum,  opitior,  scriptorcm  tamen,  ut  legendiis  sit.''^ 
See  Bentley  on  Tus.  Qncest.  p.  56.     Hermann. 

^  Euripides  twitted  Sophocles  with  this  line  as  superfluous,  who  re- 
torted with  the  same  objection  on  the  two  first  lines  of  the  Phoenissa^. — 
Sch.  ad  Phcen.  Hermann  thinks  either  exordium  would  be  the  worse  for 
the  omission. 

^  Argos  is  here  applied  to  the  country  by  Brunck  ;  but  according  to 
the  Museum  Criticum,  No.  I.,  "The  cities  of  Argos  and  Mycena?,  being 
almost  contitruous,  went  by  the  general  name  of  Argos,  as  the  cities  of 
London  and  Westminster  are  known  by  the  common  denomination  of 
London."  If  the  ancient  reading,  ro  yap,  be  revived,  and  the  colon  after 
ovniideig  removed,  take  ulcoc  in  apposition  with  Argos.  Brunck's  read- 
ing injures  the  metre.  Hermann  quotes  Euripides  to  defend  Sophocles' 
boldness  ;  \vuxov  poal:  he  considered  Argos  used  loosely  to  denominate 
the  whole  country  and  its  divisions  alike. 


5— 3G.]  ELECTRA.  HI 

phrensj-stricken  daughter  of  Inachus,^  and  this,  Orestes,  the 
Lyctean  forum  of  the  wolf-slaying  god ;  but  this  on  the  left, 
the  renowned  temple  of  Juno ;  and  for  the  place  Avhither  we 
are  arrived,  assure  thyself  thou  seest  the  all-opulent  Mycence : 
and  this  the  habitation  of  the  Felopidas  teeming  with  murders, 
whence  I  formerly,  having  received  thee  from  thine  own  sister, 
bore  and  rescued  thee  from  thy  father's  bloody  fate,  and  nour- 
ished thee  thus  far  onward  in  thy  youth,  as  an  avenger  of  liis 
murder  to  thy  sire.  Now  therefore,  Orestes,  and  thou,  Pyla- 
des,2  dearest  of  foreign  friends,  what  it  is  needful  to  do  we  must 
quickly  consider,  since  already  the  brilliant  light  of  the  sun 
wakes  clear  the  morning  carols  of  the  birds,  and  the  dark  night 
has  gone  from  heaven. ^  Ere,  therefore,  any  of  the  inhabitants 
walk  forth  from  his  dwelling,  we  must  confer  in  counsel,  since 
we  arc  come  to  that  point  where  there  is  no  longer  any  season 
for  delay,  but  the  crisis  for  action. 

Okestes.  O  most  beloved  of  serving-men,  what  evident 
proofs  showest  tliou  that  thou  art  good  toward  us ;  for  even 
as  a  generous  horse,  although  he  be  aged,  in  danger  has  not 
lost  his  spirit,  but  pricks  his  ears  upright,  even  so  thou  both 
uro;est  us  forward  and  art  among;  the  first  to  follow  us. 
Wherefore  my  determination  will  I  unfold ;  and  do  thou, 
lending;  an  alert  attention  to  mv  words,  if  in  aught  I  miss  of 
what  is  fitting,  set  me  right.  For  when  I  came  a  suppliant 
to  the  Pythian  oracle,  that  I  might  learn  in  what  way  I  should 
exact  justice  for  my  father  from  his  murderers,  Phoebus  gave 
mc  an  answer,  such  as  thou  presently  shalt  hear :  "  That  in 
person,  alike  unfurnished  with  armor  and  with  martial  host, 

1  lo,  whose  story  is  told  in  the  Prometheus  of  ^Eschylus,  from  Vvhich 
play  the  word  Glarpo-A?]^  is  borrowed.  The  temple  of  Juno  was,  accord- 
inar  to  Strabo,  fifteen  stades  to  the  left  of  the  town  :  she  was  the  patron- 
ess  of  Aro-os. 

^  Pylades  was  the  son  of  Strophius,  a  Phoolan  prince,  by  a  sister  cf 
Ao-amemnon,  and  beino-  educated  with  his  cousin  Orestes,  formed  \vi:h 
liini  a  friendship  that  has  become  proverbial. 

^  Commentators  disagree  on  the  interpretation  cf  this  place.  The 
cchoiiast  suggests  two  constructions,  an  antiptosis,  /le/.aivr]^  vvktoq  Tii 
ilarpa  eK?jAoi-£v,  which  has  been  foilov/ed  by  Brunck,  and  eKAD.oi-e 
Tu)V  ucjTpuv  y  fit/.aiva  evopovrj.  jMusgrave  translates  iK/J/oc-rrev  cx- 
ccssit^  understanding  darpa  to  mean  the  whole  heavens,  as  ^"irgil,  ^En. 
III.  567 : 

"  Tcr  spumam  elisam  et  rorantia  vidimus  astra." 

And  this  last  is  approved  of  by  TJonk  in  the  Museum  Criticum. 


1j2  ELECTRA.  [36— G3 

by  craft  I  should  steal  the  lawful  slaughter  of  mine  hand." 
Since,  then,  Ave  have  heard  such  an  oracle  as  this,  do  thou 
entering,  when  opportunity  shall  introduce  thee,  into  this 
house,  learn  all  that  there  is  doing,  that  being  informed  thou 
mayest  tell  us  sure  tidings.  For  fear  not  that  with  both  thine 
own  a""e  and  the  long  lapse  of  time  they  shall  recognize  thee, 
or  even  suspect  thee  thus  tricked  out.^  But  make  use  of  some 
such  tale  as  this,  that  thou  art  a  Fhocian,^  stranger,  coming 
from  Plianoteus,  since  he  is  tlie  chiefest  of  the  foreign  allies 
they  have.  But  announce^  adding  an  oath,^  that  Orestes  is 
dead  by  a  violent  death,  having  been  tumbled  from  a  wdieeled 
chariot-car  at  the  Pythian  games.  So  let  thy  story  stand. 
Bat  we  having,  as  he  enjoined,  first  crowned  my  father's  sep- 
ulchre with  libations  and  locks  cropped  from  my  head,  will 
then  come  back  again,  bearing  in  our  hands  a  brazen-sided 
vessel,  Avhicli  thou  also  knowest  is  somewhere  hidden  among 
the  brushwood,  that  cheating  them  with  words  w^e  may  bring 
them  pleasant  tidings,  how  that  my  body  is  perished,  already 
consumed  by  fire  and  reduced  to  ashes.  For  what  does  this 
pain  me,  when,  dead  in  words,  in  deeds  I  shall  be  safe,  and 
bear  away  renown  ?  I  indeed  think  no  expression  ill-omened 
which  gain  attends:^  for  already  have  I  firequently  seen  the 
wise  also  in  story  falsely  dying  y'  then  afterward,  Avhen  they 

^  Musgrave  objects  to  this  meanincr  of  tlie  word  ■'jvOiGfi.tvov,  and  also 
to  the  scholiast's  idea  :  he  proposes  himself  to  render  it  "  canis  capillis 
variegatumy  uvOoq  is  certainly  applied  to  the  hair.  Suidas  and  Mos- 
chonulus  are  ajrainst  him. 

^  ^uKiiug  Trap'  uvSpug  ^avor^cjg  is  BlomfielJ's  reading.  !Mus.  Crit, 
4»cj\-fiV. — H. 

^  The  objection  of  Camerarius,  that  Orestes  should  not  be  made  to 
advis3  perjury,  has  given  Musgrave  great  trouble;  and  proposes  fjr 
c'p.cfj  to  read  oy/c.'j.  Bat  it  is  too  true  that  Orestes,  b}^  his  own  admis- 
sions just  after,  could  make,  like  Ulysses,  liis  own  principles  and  those 
of  others  equally  subservient  to  liis  intere.st  without  much  remorse.  For 
the  suppressed  v/ord  dyye/.iar,  sec  Brunck's  note. 

*  Thus  Menelaus  in  Euripides  : 

icaaog  [itv  upvig'  ci  6e  iccpdavij  /Jyuv 
iroLiiog  elfii,  fi?/  Gavdv,  /.oyu  Oavelv. 

*  This  alludes  to  Pythagoras,  who  feigned  himself  dead  to  acquire  the 
reputation  of  prophetic  skill.  Zamolxis  and  Aristcus  of  Proconnesus, 
author  of  the  Arimaspians,  have  similar  stories  told  of  them  by  Herodo- 
tus, B.  IV.  Hermann  wonders  at  the  commentators  for  their  illustra- 
tions here,  understanding  the  poet  to  allude  to  such  distinguished  men 


64—93.]  ELECTRA.  113 

shall  again  have  returned  home,  they  have  been  the  more  hon- 
ored. As  I  presume  that  I  also,  coming  to  life  subsequently  to 
tl.is  report,  shall  yet  blaze  forth,  as  a  star,  to  my  foes.  Eut 
O  land  of  my  forefathers,  and  ye  its  gods  indigenous,  welcome 
me  as  prosperous  in  this  my  journey ;  and  thou  too,  O  abode 
of  my  ancestors,  for,  urged  by  an  impulse  from  heaven,  I  come 
to  purge  thee  by  my  just  revenge:  then  dismiss  me  not  in  dis- 
honor Irom  this  my  country,  but  [make  me]  master  of  my 
Avealth  and  the  restorer  of  my  house.  ^  This  now  I  have  said, 
but,  old  man,  be  it  at  once  thy  care,  having  gone,  to  execute 
with  caution  thy  duty,  but  ^YQ  will  go  forth,  for  it  is  the  season; 
which  indeed  is  to  mankind  the  greatest  arbiter  of  every  act.^ 

Electra.  Alas!   ah  me  unhappy! 

At.  In  sooth  methought  I  heard  from  the  door  some  female 
servant  inside  heaving  a  suppresed  sigh,  my  son. 

Or.  Can  it  be  the  hapless  Electra?  wilt  thou  tarry  here  and 
listen  to  her  cries  ? 

At.  By  no  means.  Let  us  attempt  to  execute  nothing  prior 
to  the  commands  of  Loxias,^  and  from  these  to  commence  our 
course,  pouring  out  the  libations  to  thy  father,  for  this  brings 
us  both  victory  and  strength  in  action. 

El.  O  holy  light,  and  air  that  sharest  equal  space  with 
earth,  how  many  a  strain  of  mournful  dirges,  how  many  a  blow 
against  my  bleeding  breast  hast  thou  witnessed  for  me,  when 
murky  night  shall  have  retired  !^  But  for  my  livelong  nights — 
the  hateful  couches  of  this  house  of  woes  are  conscious :  how 

generally  as,  being  at  one  time  in  disgrace  with  and  banishment  frona 
their  country,  v/ere  afterward  held  in  greater  repute  than  ever. 

^  This  may  be  given  better  thus,  perhaps  :  "  And  make  me  not  a  dis- 
honored outcast  from  my  country,  but  a  master,"  etc. 

2  Thus  in  Philoctctes,  v.  837  : 

Kaipug  rot  ttuvtov  yvijjuav  laxf^v 
TToAi)  TTcpa  Tioda  updrog  upvvrac. 

^  "  The  epithet  '  Loxian,'  so  constantly  used  by  the  Greek  poets,  ia  In- 
terpreted by  the  scholia  in  tvv'O  ways,  either  as  referring  to  the  oblique 
direction  of  his  voice  {i.  c,  the  ambiguity  of  his  oracles),  or  as  belonging 
to  him  from  the  oblique  path  of  the  sun  through  the  ecliptic."  Oxf. 
Translation  of  Aristophanes. 

*  'T'!TO?.et(l>0ij,  Schol.  TrapeZO?;,  Brunck  reccssit.  Musgrave  says,  "iiTro- 
?.£i'rreiv,  quod  pro  dcjiccrc,  minui  positum  citat  Budseus  ex  Aristotele,  me- 
lius omnino  hie  convenit  quam  passivum  vTro?iei7rca6at,  quod  rcsto,  svper- 
S7im  valet.  Utrum  tamen  legcndum  sit  v~o?.eiTT7i  an  vTru^Etipri,  mihi  non 
Eatis  liquet." 


114  ELECTRA.  [94—137. 

oft  I  mourn  mine  unhappy  sire,  whom  in  a  foreign  country 
gory  Mars  entertained  not/  but  my  mother,  and^gisthus  the 
partner  of  her  bed,  lop  off  his  head  with  nuirdcrous  axe,  as 
wood-cutters  an  oak.  And  for  all  this  no  pity  is  felt  by  any 
other  save  me,  when  thou,  my  father,  hast  perished  so  dis- 
ccracefully  and  piteously.  But  never  then  wdll  I  desist  from 
laments  and  bitter  cries,  as  long  as  I  look  on  the  ail-glowing 
beams  of  the  stars,  as  I  look  on  this  daylight ;  so  as  not,  like 
some  nightingale  that  has  lost  her  young,^  to  pour  forth  to  all 
mine  echo  inviting  to  shrill  lament  before  these  gates  of  my 
native  home.  O  abode  of  Pluto  and  of  Proserpine,  O  nether 
Mercury 3  and  awful  Curse,  and  ye  venerable  children  of  the 
gods,  ye  Furies,  wdio  regard  them  that  unjustly  perish,  them 
that  by  stealth  usurp  another's  bed,^  come  ye,  lend  aid,  avenge 
the  murder  of  our  father,  and  to  me  send  my  brother,  for  alone 
I  have  no  longer  strength  to  weigh  up  the  burden  of  affliction 
that  is  in  the  opposite  scale. 

Chorus.  Ah!  Electra,  child,  child  of  a  most  wretched^ 
mother,  wdiy  thus  insatiably  dost  thou  pine  in  lamentation,  for 
Agamemnon  long  since  taken  most  godlessly  in  snaTes  by  thy 
crafty  mother  and  to  an  evil  hand  betrayed  ?  O  that  he  who 
caused  this  might  perish,  if  it  be  lawful  for  me  to  utter  this. 

^  Cf.  ^sch.  Choeph.  345,  el  yiip  vtt'  'i/u(p  Ilpog  rivog  Aviuojv,  Tzdrep 
6opir/UT]7og  KarrjvapLGdrjq. — B. 

^  Brunck  translates  the  Greek  word  ^'  pullis  orhafa.'"  Musgrave,  how- 
ever, considering  it  an  alkision  to  the  fate  of  Philomela  and  Itys,  renders 
it  *■•  libcrorum  suoruin  interfcctrix.'''  As  Franklin  observes  on  v.  147, 
Procne,  who  put  Itys  to  death,  is  supposed  by  u^Eschylus,  Euripides,  and 
Aristophanes  (in  his  play  of  the  Birds)  to  have  been  changed  into  a  night- 
inoale. 

^  Mercury  is  addressed  by  this  name  in  allusion  to  his  office  as  con- 
ductor of  the  dead : 

" Animas  ille  evocat  Oreo 

Pallentes,  alias  sub  Tartara  tristia  niittit ; 

Dat  Gomnos  adiniitque,  et  luniina  morte  resignat." 

From  the  third  office  enumerated  by  Virgil,  we  may  suppose  that  Elec- 
tra's  prayers  had  already  been  cfTectually  addressed  to  this  god,  as  Cly- 
temnestra  shortly  after  sends  offi»rings  to  Aganiem.non's  tomb  in  conse- 
q^ucnce  of  having  had  her  rest  disturbed  by  dreams  of  ill  omen. 

*  Hermann,  admitting  an  hiatus  of  some  words  before  Tovq,  fills  it  up 
thus  :  aloxpCJg  "kiarpuv  Trpodurov;  evvar,  quibus  furto  crcptus  est  proditiis 
torus. 

*  "  AvaravoTurag,  Schol.  t^o)?.cGruTT]c  rccte.  Vide  Musgravium  ad 
Euripidis  Here.  Fur.  1349." — Brunck. 


J 


12S— 163.]  ELECTRA.  115 

El.  Oitspring  of  noble  parents,  ye  are  come  as  the  solace  of 
mv  troubles ;  1  both  know  and  am  conscious  of  this :  in  no 
wise  does  it  escape  me,  nor  will  I  forsake  this  [task]  so  as  not 
to  bemoan  my  wretched  father.  But,  ye  that  requite  the  boon, 
of  every  kind  of  friendship,  leave  me  thus  to  languish,  alas ! 
alas !  I  implore  you. 

Cii.  Yet  still  thou  wilt,  never  raise  thy  father  at  least  from 
the  lake  of  Fluto,  man's  common  bourne,  neither  by  shrieks 
nor  prayers.^  But  from  moderate  [laments]  to  a  grief  beyond 
reason,  thou  ever  with  groans  art  perishing.  In  matters 
wherein  there  is  no  release  from  evil,  why,  I  pray  you,  art 
tliou  fond  of  misery  intolerable? 

El.  Foolish  he,  who  is  forgetful  of  his  parents  calamitously 
deceased.     But  the  sorrov/er  that  mourns  for  Itys,-  ever  Ity 
that  aiirighted  bird,  messenger  of  Jove,  accords  with  my  feel 
ings  at  least.     O  all-wretched  Niobe,  thee,  thee  I  account  a 
deity,  who  ever  in  thy  stony  tomb  weepest,  alas !  alas ! 

Ch.  Not  to  thee  alone,  be  sure,  my  child,  among  mankind 
hath  grief  arisen,  wherewith  thou  surpassest  those  Avitliin, 
with  whom  thou  art  from  the  same  source,  and  by  birth  akin : 
as  is  the  life  of  Chrysothemis  and  Iphianassa,  and  he  that 
sorroYv'eth  in  his  youth  concealed,-^  whom  one  day  the  re- 
nowned land  of  the  Mycenians  shall  welcome  haply,  in  ances- 
try illustrious,  under  the  benign  conduct  of  Jove  returning  to 
this  land,  Orestes.* 

^  Hermann  reads  ui-Tatc,  the  vestiges  of  which  he  thinks  he  has  found 
in  Hesychius  :  dvT?}aet  (scribe  uvrriai),  /uravelair,  uvrr/aeacv. 

^  Penelope,  in  the  Odyssey,  similarly  describes  her  grief.  Od.  xix. 
520.  See  some  excellent  observations  on  the  line  ?/re  Oafiu  rpo-nuaa 
X££i  TTo^.vrjXEa  cpuvTiv  among  Twining's  remarks  on  the  expression  of 
musical  sound  by  poetry.     Arist.  Poet.  Prel.  Diss. 

^  Hermann  makes  ux^f^v  a  noun,  and  construes  it  with  Kpvrcra. 
"  Happy  in  a  youth  unknown  to  sorrows  :"  semota  a  dolor ihus.  This 
is  much  less  forced  than  the  common  version. — Tr.  But  if  Orestes  was 
free  from  evils,  why  mention  him"?  If  we  read  Kpv-ra  6'  dx^^uv,  and  put 
a  longer  stop  after  'l(ptdvacaa,  we  shall  have  a  better  sense  :  "  thou  art, 
like  them,  unhapp}^ ;  but  blest  is  he,  whom  now  in  age  of  sorrow  reckless 
at  soniC  time  Mvcene's  jrlorious  land  shall  hail." — B. 

*  The  withholding  this  magic  of  a  name  till  the  last,  to  crown  the  aiTec- 
tionate  appeal  to  Eiectra's  happier  thoughts,  is  worthy  of  Sophccles  ;  and 
if  equaled  at  all,  is  so  in  the  turn  given  by  Electra's  v.ounded  spirit  to 
that  which  was  meant  so  differently.  This,  however,  none  of  the  older 
editors  have  preserved  ;  and  Brunck's  and  Musgrave's  annotations  on  this 
passage  show  their  error. 


IIG  ELECTRA.  [1G4— 204. 

El.  Whom  forsooth  I  unceasingly  expecting,  wretch  that  I 
am  !  childless,  unwedded,  am  ever  roaming,  drenched  in  tears, 
supporting  unceasing  pain  of  miseries ;  while  he  is  forgetful 
of  all  that  he  has  received,  and  all  he  has  been  taught.  For 
what  messatre  sroes  forth  from  me  that  is  not  mocked  ?  Since 
he  is  ever  loni^in<i-  indeed,  but  thouuli  he  lonfrs,  he  deigns  not 
to  make  his  appearance. 

Cii.  Courage,  my  daughter,  courage !  There  is  a  mighty 
Jove  in  heaven,^  who  overlooketh  and  swayeth  all  things ;  to 
whom  referring  thy  too  bitter  choler,  be  neither  over  indignant 
v/ith  nor  forgetful  of  those  whom  thou  detestest :  for  time  is  a 
lenient  god.  Since  neither  is  the  son  of  Agamemnon  that 
lives  on  the  herd-pasturing  shore  of  Crisa^  without  return,  nor 
the  god  that  reigns  by  Acheron. 

El.  But  from  me  the  greater  part  of  life  hath  already 
passed  away  without  hope,  nor  can  I  longer  endure,  who  with- 
out parents  am  wasting  myself  away,  for  whom  no  man  stands 
forth  as  champion,  but  like  some  worthless  stranger  I  dwell 
in  the  chambers  of  my  father,  in  raiment  thus  disgraceful,  and 
take  my  place  at  empty  tables. 

Ch.  Pitiable  indeed  were  the  words  at  his  return,^  and 
pitiable  that  in  thy  father's  chambers,  when  the  adverse  stroke 
of  the  ail-brazen  axe  was  inflicted  on  liim.  Fraud  it  was  that 
prompted,  lust  that  perpetrated,  the  murder,  having  fearfully 
brought  into  being  a  fearful  shape,  "^  whether  it  were  god  or 
mortal  that  did  all  this. 

El.  Oh  !  that  day,  that  dawned  above  all  indeed  most  hate- 
ful to  ,me  :   O  nighty  O  shocking  woes  of  that  horrible  banquet 

^  Plato  Phacdr.,  p.  344,  11.  o  fiiv  67)  fieya^  yyi/xuv  kut'  ovpavuv  Zevg 
....diaKooficjv  -TTcivra  kol  eTi/ne/.ofievog.  Cf.  Themist.  Oral.  xv.  p.  332  ; 
Maximus  Tyr.  xxix.  p.  348. — B. 

^  Crisa,  usually  written  Crissa,  was  a  large  town  of  Phocis,  said  to  be 
the  capital  of  Strophius.  It  gave  name  to  the  Crissaean  bay,  the  scene  of 
several  actions  in  the  Pcloponncsian  war. 

^  Alluding  to  the  presaging  sorrow  of  the  Argive  people  on  Agamem- 
non's return,  the  adulterous  loves  of  ^Egisthus  and  Clytcmncstra  being 
known  to  them.     See  ^schylus. 

'^  Precisely  Shakespeare's  idea  : 

"  Between  the  acting  of  a  dreadful  thing, 
And  the  first  motion,  all  the  interim  is 
Like  a  phantasma,  or  a  hideous  dream."' 

Jul.  Ccrs.,  act  2,  sc    1. 


-;.0o— 243.]  ELECTRA.  117 

— ilie  disgraceful  death  my  sire  beheld  from  twain  assassins, 
that  seized  upon  my  life  betrayed,  that  destroyed  me !  To 
whom  may  the  mighty  god  of  Olympus  give  to  endure  retrib- 
iiti%^e  sufferings,  and  may  tliey  never  enjoy  their  splendor,  hav- 
ing accomplished  such  deeds. 

Cii.  Bethink  thee  :  speak  no  farther:  art  thou  not  conscious^ 
from  what  a  state  thou  faliest  at  present  into  hardships  all 
tliine  own  thus  unworthily!  For  thou  hast  incurred  over  and 
above  ail  excess  of  evils,  continually  gendering  quarrels  by  thy 
sad  spirit.  But  these  matters  are  not  worth  the  strife,  to  cope 
Avith  those  in  power.^ 

El.  By  dreadful  woes  have  I  been  forced  to  it,  ay,  terrible. 
I  am  fully  conscious  of  my  wrath,  nor  does  it  escape  me.  But 
enough,  amid  such  atrocious  crimes  I  shall  never  check^  these 
miseries  as  long  as  life  shall  contain  me.  For  from  whom,  O 
friendly  race,  could  I  ever  hear  a  profitable  Avord  ?  from  Avhom 
that  which  is  opportune.  Forbear,  forbear  me,  ye  comforters  ; 
for  these  woes  shall  be  ne'er  relaxed !  never  "\\dll  I  rest  from 
these  troubles  thus  countless  in  my  laments. 

Cir.  Nay,  but  with  good-will  at  least  I  advise  as  a  faithful 
mother,  that  thou  beget  not  woe  on  woe. 

El.  And  vv^hat  measure  exists  to  my  wretchedness?  Come, 
how  is  it  honorable  to  be  careless  of  the  dead  ?  with  whom 
of  mankind  originated  this  ?  ^  May  I  neither  be  had  in  honor 
among  them,  nor  if  I  am  united  to  any  good  may  I  dwell  with 
it  in  tranquillity,  if  I  repress  the  flights  of  my  shrill-toned 

^  Musgrave,  in  his  notes,  proposes  the  following  alterations  in  these 
lines  ; 

O'j  yvuuav  lax^iC  £^  oguv 

ra  TTapovr'  o'cKelg,  a  r'  elq  arag 

'Eu7ri~Teig  ovru  CKaiuJg. 

He  also  interprets,  and  perhaps  with  correctness,  uttj  by  vesania. — Tr. 
olKEcag  uTag,  "evils  all  your  own."  For  Electra  had  not  shown  the 
same  submission  as  Chrysothemis,  and  consequently  met  with  harsher 
treatment. — B. 

^  Harm.  "ivx^  Tzo/.tjxovg,  rdde  rolg  dvvarolg 

OVK  kpLGTU,  'TZAudeLV. 

"  So  as  to  cope  with  those  in  power  on  these  points  v/hich  admit  not  of 
gainsaying.'' — Tr.     Perhaps  we  should  read  tz'/AOdv. — B. 

^  arag,  see  v.  -08. 

*  Or,  "  in  whom  of  inen  hath  this  arisen"!"  This  is  perhaps  the  better 
translation.  Brunck-s  Latin  version  has,  uhinam  homo  est  en  mgenio 
natus  1 


118  ELECTRA.  [244—283. 

shrieks  to  the  dishonor  of  my  parents  ;  for  if  he,  having  fallen, 
shall  lie  in  eartli  a  thing  cf  nought,  and  they  shall  not  in  turn 
give  satisfaction  with  blood  for  blood,  then  may  shame  and 
piety  from  all  mankind  be  annihilated  J 

Cii.  I  indeed,  my  child,  came  to  promote  at  once  thy  wel- 
fare and  mine  own ;  but  if  I  advise  not  well,  do  thou  prevail, 
for  we  will  follow  in  thy  company. 

El.  Ladies,  I  blush,  if  in  my  many  lamentations  I  seem  to 
you  to  be  too  dov\"nhearted,  yet,  for  their  violence  forces  me  to 
do  it,  forgive  me.  For  how  could  any  woman  of  high  family, 
looking  on  her  father's  wrongs,  not  act  thus?  "VATongs  that  by 
day  and  by  night  I  see  continually  budding  rather  than 
withering;'^  to  v/hom,  in  the  lirst  place,  the  deeds  of  the 
mother  that  bore  me  have  turned  out  most  hateful;  next,  in 
mine  own  home  I  consort  with  the  assassins  of  my  father,  and 
by  these  I  am  controlled,  and  from  these  it  is  my  lot  alike  to 
receive  and  to  want :  furthermore,  what  manner  of  days  think 
you  I  pass,  when  I  behold  ^gisthus  seated  on  my  father's 
throne  ;  and  look  on  him  dressed  in  the  very  garments  that  he 
wore,^  and  pouring  out  libations  to  the  household  gods,  where 
he  slew  him  ?  when  I  see,  too,  the  crowning  insult  of  all  this, 
the  assassin  himself  in  the  bed  of  my  father  with  my  guilty 
mother,  if  I  must  call  her  mother,  thus  cohabiting  with  him? 
So  hardened  is  she,  that  she  lives  with  that  pollution,  in  fear 
of  no  avenging  Fury  ;  but  as  if  triumphantly  laughing  at  what 
she  has  done,  having  looked  out  for  that  day  on  which  she 
formerly  slew  my  father  by  treacher}^,  on  that  day  she  insti- 
tutes the  festive  dance,  and  sacrifices  the  monthly  offerings  of 
sheep  to  her  guardian  gods ;  ^  while  I,  the  miserable,  witnessing 

^  Timon's  curse  on  Athens,  when  he  quits  it  forever,  is  a  fine  amplifi- 
cation of  this  prayer  (if  it  be  a  prayer)  of  Electra.  See  Timon  of  Athens, 
act  4,  sc.  1. 

'  Similarly  Philoctetes  : 

7]  6'  hfif)  voGog 
del  TedrjXe,  Karri  fiel^ov  tpxcrai. — V.  258. 

^"Vestimenta  regibus  solemnitcr  jnrestata.  Statins.  Theb.  v.  315, 
notas,  regain  gcstamina,  vcslcs:  ct  vi.  80,  cultus(]ue,  insignia  rcgni,  Fur- 
pureos.  Germanic.  Arat.  Phaenomen.  Rcgcs — satis  religiose  tumcati. 
Nonnus.  K.  20. 

^aGOJi'ia  ^aiopu.  tokIjQQ 
t^vauTo^  TTopipvpeCf)  TTSTraTiay/xtva  (pdpea  koxo).'" — ^^lusgrave. 

^  "  Clytcmncstra.  in  imitation  of  the  solemn  honors  [aid  to  the  gods 


282—307.]  ELECTRA.  119 

all  this  at  home,  lament,  pine  away  and  shriek  over  the  ill- 
omened  least  that  bears  my  father' &  name  ;  alone,  to  myself, 
for  I  have  not  power  even  to  v/eep  so  much  as  my  soul  has 
pleasure  in  doing  ;  since  the  woman  herself,  in  words  high- 
spirited,^  accosts  ana  reviles  me  with  such  harsh  terms  as 
these :  "  O  god-detested  thing  of  hate,  to  thee  alone  is  thy 
father  dead  ?  Is  none  else  of  mankind  in  grief?  Mayest  thou 
perish  evilly,  nor  may  the  nether  gods  ever  release  thee  from 
thy  present  woes."  Thus  she  insults  me  :  but  when  she  hears 
from  anv  that  Orestes  is  about  to  come,  then  infuriate  she 
comes  and  cries  aloud :  '•  Art  thou  not  the  cause  of  all  this  to 
me?  Is  not  this  thy  work,  that  didst  steal  and  spirit  aAvay 
Orestes  from  my  hands  ?  But  be  assured  that  thou  shalt  pay 
a  deserved  penalty  at  least."-  Thus  does  she  bark  upon  me, 
and  with  her  close  at  lier  side  sets  her  on  to  this  that  glorious 
man,  her  husband,  that  utter  dastard,  that  very  pest,  that  fight- 
er of  his  battles  with  woman's  aid.  While  I,  unhappy,  expect- 
ing from  time  to  time  that  Orestes  will  come  upon  them  to  put 
a  stop  to  all  this,  am  undone.  For,  ever  purposing  to  eliect 
something,  he  hath  ruined  my  hopes  both  present  and  to  come."' 
In  euch  a  condition,  then,  my  friends,  there  is  no  room  fcr 


and  heroes  on  the  new  moons,  called  therefore,  t/i//7?x'a  ifpa,  insiiiuted  a 
monthly  festival,  Vv'ith  sacrifices  to  the  gods  her  preservers,  on  the  day  on 
which  Agamemnon  was  murdered.  This  was  celebrated  with  songs  and 
dances,  and  a  feast  insolently  called  Epulse  Agamemnonise." — Potter.  To 
which  Franklin  adds,  that  Dinias,  in  his  history  of  Argos,  informs  us  it 
was  on  the  thirteenth  of  the  month  Gamelion,  which  answers  to  the  be- 
ginning of  our  January,  or,  according  to  Potter,  the  latter  end  of  that 
month,  or  beginning  of  February. 

^  Musgrave  objects  to  the  idea  of  Clytemnestra  being  noble  in  words, 
and  proposes  to  read  'aoxolgi  yevvaia,  ilia  in  insidiis  forhs. — Tr.  But  as 
yevvatoi  is  ofLen  used  ironicaliy,  we  may  very  well  take  yew.  Auy.  to 
mean  "word-valiant."'  The  translation,  "as  she  is  called,"  is  quite 
wrong.— B. 

2  hideed  it  is  by  no  means  easy  to  see  why  Electra  had  not  ere  this 
fallen  a  victim  to  the  vengeance  of  her  mother,  as  by  her  own  account 
she  took  no  pains  to  conceal  her  abhorrence  of  Clytemnestra's  conduct. 
Perhaps  we  must  refer  it  to  the  same  cause  which,  in  the  Odyssey,  pre- 
serves Telemachus  so  long — superstition  ;  to  which  the  Greeks  were  most 
prone,  and  which  by  no  means  ceases  with  religion  and  virtue,  as  both 
the  impious  festival  and  penitential  offerings  of  the  Argive  queen  sulti- 
ciently  prove. 

^  By  ovGG^  Kcl  d-ovcar,  Hermann  understands  her  hopes  in  herself 
present   and   in  Orestes    absent.      Many  probably  will   disagree   with 


120  ELECTRA.  [30S— 337. 

either  prudence  or  proper  respect,  but  in  evils  forsootli,  there 
is  absolute  necessity  to  be  subservient  to  evil. 

Cii.  Come,  tell  me,  whether  sa^-est  thou  all  this  to  us,  iEgis- 
thus  being  at  hand,  or  having  quitted  his  home? 

El,  Even  so.  Think  not  I  could  walk  abroad  were  he  near  ; 
but  now  he  happens  to  be  in  the  country. 

Cn.  Truly,  then,  would  I  with  greater  boldness  join  with 
thee  in  discourse,  if  this  be  indeed  so. 

El.  As  he  is  now  absent,  question  what  thou  wilt. 

Cii.  Then  I  ask  thee,  what  sayest  thou  of  thy  brother  ?  will. 
he  come,  or  delays  he?     I  wish  to  know. 

El.  He  promises  at  least,  but  j^romising  he  pcrform.s  nought 
of  what  he  says. 

Cii.  Ay,  for  man  in  the  performance  of  a  mighty  deed  is 
wont  to  delay. 

El.  And  yet  it  was  not  with  delay  I  saved  him. 

Cii.  Courage ;  he  is  naturally  generous  to  aid  his  friends. 

El.  I  am  confident  of  it,  else  had  I  not  Ions:  to  live. 

Cii.  Speak  nothing  farther  at  present,  since  coming  out  of 
the  house  I  perceive  thy  sister,  by  birth  of  the  same  father  and 
mother,  Clirysothemis,i  bearing  the  sepulchral  offerings  in  her 
hanJs,  such  as  are  the  appointed  due  of  the  dead. 

CiiKYSOTiiEMis.  Sister,  what  talk  is  this  thou  again  bold- 
est, having  come  forth  to  the  entrance  of  the  vestibule;  nor 
art  willing  to  be  taught  by  length  of  time  not  idly  to  gratify 
a  fruitless  rage?  ^Nevertheless  thus  far  I  know  myself,  that 
I  am  grieved  at  present  circumstances ;  so  much  so  that  were 
I  to  acquire  tlie  power,  I  would  disclose  what  are  my  senti- 
ments toward  them.  But  now  in  miseries  I  think  fit  to  voyage 
witli  lowered  sail,  and  not  fancy  indeed  I  effect  somethinf^, 
yet  woi'K  them  no   mischief.     Thus  moreover  would  I  have 

him. — Tr.     Liddell,  s.  v.  d-n//i,  v.'cU  remarks  that  this  is  merely  like 
ovTeq  Kol  a-ovTEQ,  and  means  "all  the  hopes  I  have.'' — B. 
^  Thus  Komcr,  11.  ix. : 

"  Yet  more — three  daughters  in  his  court  are  bred, 
And  each  well  worthy  of  a  roj-al  bed  ; 
LaoJice,  and  Iphigcnia  fair, 
And  bright  Chrysothemis  with  golden  hair." 

The  original  bar,  Iphianassa.  which  Pope  appears  to  have  little  reason  for 
changing  to  Ipbigenia,  who  had  been  sacrificed  at  Aulis.  Elcctra  is  usu- 
ally considered  the  same  with  Laodice. — Tn.  But  they  are  one  and  the 
same  person.     Cf.  Lucret.  I.  85. — B. 


338— 3G4.]  ELECTRA.  121 

thee  jilso  act :  aiitl  yet  the  right  is,  not  wherein  I  speak,  but 
wheroiu  thou  judgest.  But  if  I  must  needs  live  free,  I  must 
wholly  obey  my  master. 

El.  Shameful  at  least  is  it,^  that  thou  being  from  the  father 
whose  born  child  thou  art,  forgettest  him,  but  art  regardful  of 
thy  mother.  For  all  these  admonitions  to  me  are  taught  thee 
by  her,  and  nought  thou  spcakest  of  thyself.  Else  choose  at 
least  one  of  the  two,  either  to  be  senseless,  or  in  thy  senses  to 
have  no  remembrance  of  thy  friends,  since  thou  just  now  sayest, 
couldst  thou  but  get  strength  to  it,  thou  Avouldst  demonstrate 
thy  abhorrence  of  these ;  but  with  me,  Vvdio  am  in  all  things  bent 
on  vengeance  for  my  father,  thou  not  only  dost  not  co-operate, 
but  also  dissuadest  me  in  action.  Hath  not  this  cowardice  to 
add  to  misery  ?  For  instruct  me,  or  learn  of  me,  what  advant- 
a""e  could  accrue  to  me  havin";  desisted  from  these  wailint]fs. 
Do  not  I  live  ?  but  ill,  I  know,  yet  well  enough  for  me.  And 
I  annoy  them,  so  as  to  attach  honor  to  the  dead,  if  in  the 
other  world  there  be  any  pleasure :  while  thou,  our  hater, 
hatest  them  in  word,  but  in  deed  consortest  with  thy  father's 
murderei-s.  I  then  would  never,  not  even  if  any  one  were 
purposing  to  bring  me  these  thy  gifts,  wherein  thou  now  wan- 
tonest,  submit  myself  to  these :  no,  to  thee  be  the  wealthy 
board  set  out,  and  plenty  flow  around  thee :  to  me  the  only 
nourishment  be  not  to  pain  myself  ;'2  thine  honor  I  covet  not 

^  This  whole  scene  between  the  two  sisters  closely  resembles  the  first 
between  Antigone  and  Ismenc ;  as  w^eil  in  the  dispositions  of  the  parties 
concerned,  as  in  the  subject  of  their  discussion,  the  necessary  respect  to 
be  paid  to  the  dead.  And  when  we  sec  some  of  the  finest  productions  of 
the  Greek  language  depending  for  their  catastrophe  on  this  point,  we  shall 
perhaps  the  less  wonder  that  an  idea  so  constantly  implanted  in  the  mul- 
titude as  the  connection  of  the  dead  with  the  living,  should  have  taken 
root,  even  in  so  vigorous  a  mind  as  Aristotle's. 

"  See  Brunck's  note.  Musgrave,  who  retains  the  common  reading, 
thus  remarks  ;  "  Schoiiastes  et  hoc  in  MSS.  invenisse  vidctur,  ct  prsterea 
"kLTTElv,  quod  hunc  sensum  efficeret :  Milii  satis  non  dcficcre  alimenta. 
Sed  omnino  retinendum  avtceIv.  Mihi  tnstar  pabula  sit,  non  me  diin- 
taxat,  scd  alios  angerc.''' — Confer,  v.  357.  Hermann  retains  the  common 
reading  Tovfit  /i?/  /.v-elv,  which  he  renders  miJd  non  dolorcm  creare 
(rmhi  hoc  tantuvi  csto  'pabulum)  and  understands  Electra  to  allude  to  the 
remorse  she  must  experience,  if  she  paid  an  impious  respect  to  ^Egisthus 
and  her  mother. — Tr.  I  have  adopted  Hermann's  interpretation,  as  be- 
ing best  suited  to  the  sense,  although  I  am  persuaded  all  is  not  right  in 
the  text.— B. 

F 


122  ELECTRA.  [365—392. 

to  obtain  ;  nor  v/ouldst  thou,  at  least  wcrt  thou  wise  :  but  now 
when  thou  hast  in  thy  power  to  be  called  the  child  of  a  sire 
the  noblest  of  all,  be  called  thy  mother's :  for  thus  to  most  men 
wilt  thou  show  thyself  base,  deserting  thy  murdered  father  and 
tliy  friends. 

Cii.  Nought  v.-rathfuily,  I  pray  you  by  the  gods :  since  there 
is  profit  in  the  words  of  both,  wouldst  thou  but  learn  to  make 
use  of  hers,  and  she  in  turn  of  thine. 

I  CiiR.  I,  ladies,  am  in  some  sort  accustomed  to  her  Avords: 
nor  htfxl  I  ever  recalled  it  to  her  mind,  had  I  not  heard  of  a 
most  grievous  aiiliction  coming  upon  her,  which  v/ill  v/ithhold 
her  from  these  protracted  lamentations. 

El.  Come,  tell  me  then  the  hardship  :  for  shouldst  tho'^a  tell 
me  aught  greater  than  tliese  present,  I  would  no  longer  con- 
tradict thee. 

CiiR.  Nay,  I  will  tell  thee  all,  as  much  as  I  know.  For 
they  purpose,  if  thou  wilt  not  desist  from  these  wailings,  to 
send  thee  thither,  v.'here  never  shalt  thou  behold  the  light  of 
the  sun ;  but  living  in  a  confined  vault,  without  this  country, 
shalt  thou  chant  thy  woes.  AVherefore  bethink  thee,  and  never 
hereafter  when  thou  hast  suffered  blame  me.  For  nov/  it  is 
thine  to  be  Avise  in  good  time.^ 

El.  What,  then,  and  have  they  resolved  thus  to  treat  me  ? 

Cue.  Most  surely ;  when,  in  fact,  ^gisthus  shall  come 
home. 

El.  Nay,  then,  may  he  quickly  arrive  for  this  at  least. 

CiiK.  What  words  are  these  thou  curscst  thyself  vv'ithal,  un- 
happy ? 

El.  That  he  may  come,  if  he  purposes  to  do  aught  of  this. 

Cue.  That  thou  mayest  feel  what  suifering  1  Where  can 
thy  senses  be  ? 

El.  That  I  may  escape  as  far  as  possible  from  you. 

Ciiit.  But  hast  thou  no  regard  to  thy  present  life  ? 

^  It  has  been  before  remarked  that  this  scene  resembled  one  in  An- 
tigone :  the  coiRcidencc  of  the  two  plays  is  here  made  still  more  striking 
by  the  punishment  with  whieii  Electra  is  threatened. 

"  If  mournful  erics  and  wailings  before  death 
Availed,  there  is  not  one,  be  well  assured, 
That  ere  would  cease  them.     Instant  take  her  hence, 
Inclose  her  in  the  rock's  sepulchral  cave, 
As  I  commanded  ;  leave  her  there  alone. 
Either  to  die,  or  thore  to  live  entombed." — Potter,  Ant.  p-  ir>3. 


£S3— 110.]  ELECTRA.  123 

Et«  Ay,  a  line  life  is  mine,  worth  admiring ! 

CiiK.  Jvay,  it  might  be,  and  thou  knewest  how  to  be  wise. 

El.  Teach  me  not  to  be  a  traitress  to  my  friends. 

Ciiii.  I  teach  thee  not  so,  but  to  give  way  to  those  in  power. 

El.  Do  thou  thus  flatter ;  thou  speakest  not  my  wont. 

Cim.  Yet  surely  it  is  honorable  at  least  not  to  have  fallen 
from  imprudence. 

Eu  I  will  fall,  if  needs  I  must,  in  avenging  my  father. 

Cue.  Our  father,  I  am  sure,  grants  indulgence  in  this.^ 

El.  These  v/ords  it  is  the  coward's  part  to  praise. 

Cim.  But  wilt  not  thou  be  persuaded  and  consent  to  me  ? 

El.  Ko,  truly.     May  I  not  yet  be  so  void  of  understanding.^ 

Cim.  Then  will  I  too  begone  on  my  way,  whither  I  was 
sent. 

El.  But  v/hither  art  thou  wending?  to  whom  carriest  thou 
thes;p  ofierings  ? 

CiiK.  My  mother  sends  me  to  make  libations  at  my  father's 
tomb. 

El.  How  sayest  thou  ?  to  the  deadliest  of  her  human  en- 
emies ? 

CiiK.  Whom  herself  slew  :^  for  this  wouldst  thou  say. 

El.  At  the  persuasion  of  whom  of  her  friends  ?  Whose 
pleasure  is  this? 

Cim.  From  some  nocturnal  fright,  to  my  thinking. 

^  Thus  Ismene  to  her  sister : 

''  I  then  (of  those  beneath  the  earth  revered 
Imploring  pardon,  since  by  force  constrained) 
Will  yield  obedience  to  one  potent  lord. 
Attempts  beyond  our  strength  no  prudence  show." 

Potter,  Ant.  v.  69. 

^  Mz/TTO),  per  lATOTrira  for  jXTinGre,  since  'Tzu,  as  Euttraann  has  observed 
in  his  Gicck  Grammar,  includes  always  a  reference  to  past  time.  On 
this  ?uT6T7]r  see  Porson  ad  Hec.  1260. 

'  Homer's  account  is  different :  vid.  Od.  IV.  529  : 

AvTCKa  6'  Aljiadog  doAtrjv  tcppdaaaTo  rexvrjv 
KpLvuiJ.evog  Kara  djjfxov  Ieluggl  (j)cJTag  upiaTOvg, 
'Elae  ?.6xov,  eripudrj  6'  uvuysi  dalra  iriveadat. 
AvTup  6  (Sfj  KUAEUV  'Ayafj-e/Livova,  iroiusva  ?.aQv. 

"l-n-uOiaiV  KGL  Oj£f7d>a',  UElKea  jUEpfir]pL(^UV. 

Tuv  6'  ovK  £i6ot'  b7.eBpov  avr/yaje  nal  KaTETTe(f>v£ 

AeiTTVLGoag. 
He  farther  adds,  that  .■Egisthus  alone  escaped,  both  his  own  and  Aga' 
(lieiiuion's  followers  being  slain. 


124  ELECTIIA.  [411—442 

El.   O  gods  of  my  fathers  !  aid  me  even  nov/. 

CiiK.   Hast  thou  any  cheering  hope  respecting  tliis  terror? 

El.  Wouldst  thou  relate  to  me  the  vision,  1  then  could  tell 
thee. 

Cim.  I  know  not,  save  a  little,  to  tell  thee. 

El.  Nay,  tell  me  that.  Many  a  trifling  ATord,  believe  me, 
hath  ere  now  both  overthrown  and  established  mortals. 

Cur.  There  was  a  report  that  she  witnessed  a  second  time 
the  presence  of  my  and  thy  father  having  returned  to  life,  and 
then  that  he,  having  taken  the  staff  which  once  he  bore,  but 
now  -3Cgisthus,  fixed  it  in  the  earth,  and  from  it  sprouted  up  a 
vigorous  scion,  wherewith  the  whole  land  of  Mycenas  was  over- 
shadowed.^ This  I  heard  from  one  who  related  it,  who  was 
present  while  she  reveals  her  dream  to  the  sun.^  But  more 
than  this  I  know  not,  save  that  she  sends  me  in  consequence  of 
this  alarm.  Kow  by  our  country's  gods  I  implore  thee,  yield 
to  me,  nor  fall  by  imprudence ;  for  if  thou  shalt  repulse  me, 
hereafter  thou  wilt  send  for  me  in  trouble.^ 

El.  But,  my  beloved,  of  all  this  that  thou  earnest  in  thine 
hands,  attach  nothing  to  the  tomb :  for  it  is  not  lawful  for 
thee,  nor  pious,  from  that  hated  woman  to  place  funeral  gifts, 
or  to  carry  expiatory  libations  to  my  father.  But  away  with 
them  secretly,  either  to  the  winds,  or  to  deep-sunk  dust,  where 
never  any  of  them  shall  approach  my  father's  place  of  rest : 
but  when  she  shall  be  dead,  lie  they  in  earth  a  deposit  for  her- 
self; for  had  she  not  been  naturally  the  most  daring  of  women, 
she  in  the  first  j)lace  had  never  at  any  time  crowned  these 
hateful  libations  for  him,  whom  at  least  she  slew.  For  con- 
sider, whether  the  entombed  dead  in  thy  opinion  receives  these 

^  Compare  the  Choephorse  of  ^schylus,  from  v.hich  Sophocles  has 
borrowed  the  idea  of  the  dream. 

^  Under  an  idea  that  the  god  who  dispelled  the  shades  of  night  froa 
the  earth  was  also  capable  of  averting  the  evils  whicli  had  been  threat- 
ened during  that  night,  the  ancients,  having  been  alarmed  by  dreams, 
used  to  tell  theia  to  the  sun  ;  and  hence,  says  Franklin,  Apollo  was  termed 
^TTorpoTralog. 

"  Scnscrat  ut  pnlsns  tandem  Medea  tenebras, 
Ilapta  toris,  primi  jubar  ad  placabilc  Phocbi 
Ibat."  Val.  Flacc.  v.  330. 

'  Hermann  has  here  ably  pointed  out  the  skill  of  the  poet  in  coiinect- 
j.''.j  Chvysothemis'  v.'arning  (o  her  sister  with  the  account  of  Clytemnes- 
ir:  ;j  ;darm,  v.ho  \,oulJ  be  made  doubly  vindictive  in  her  purposes  tov.'urd 
JLlccLi.i  l.v  i'jj.T. 


443—476.]  ELECTRA.  125 

honors  in  mcocl  fricncllj  to  her ;  by  A\'hom  perishing  imhonor^ 
ed,  Uke  a  foe,  he  Avas  mangled,  and  I'or  a  purification  §lj£  wiped 
oft'  her  spots  upon  liis  head.^  AVhat,  tiiinkcst  thou  ^o  bear 
these  atonements  of"  the  murder  for  her  ?  It  can  not  be.  But 
leave  these  alone,  and  do  tliou,  having  cut  from  the  ringlets  on 
thine  head  the  extreme  hairs,-  and  from  me  unhappy,  a  paltry 
gift  indeed,  but  still  such  as  I  have,  give  him  this  squalid^ 
[hair],  and  my  girdle,  not  garnished  with  fineries.  And  fall- 
ing down,  beseech  him  from  the  earth  to  come  a  kindly  aid  to 
lis  against  our  enemies,  and  that  his  son  Orestes  with  mightier 
hand  may  alive  trample  under  foot  his  foes,  that  henceforth  we 
may  crown  him  with  wealthier  hands  than  wherewith  we  now 
Oiier  our  gifts.  I  think  indeed,  I  think  that  he  hath  some  plan 
in  sending  to  her  these  dreams  of  horrid  aspect.  But,  how- 
ever, my  sister,  perform  this  service  for  both  thyself  and  me  an 
aid,  and  for  the  most  beloved  of  all  mankind,  now  lying  in 
Hades,  our  common  sire. 

Cii.  "With  piety  the  damsel  speaks  :  but  thou,  my  friend,  if 
thou  be  wise,  wilt  do  this. 

Cim.  I  will  do  it ;  for  that  which  is  right  has  no  good  rea- 
son for  one  to  strive  with  two,  but  to  hasten  its  performance. 
But,  upon  my  attempting  thes^deeds,  let  there  be  silence  on 
your  part,  for  tiie  gods'  sake,  my  friends,  since  if  my  mother 
shall  hear  of  this,  a  bitter  attempt,  methinks,  I  shall  yet  hazard 
in  this. 

Cii.  If  I  be  not  born  a  foolish  prophet,  and  wanting  in  wise 
judgment,  there  will  come  Justice  the  prophetic,  bearing  in 

^  Those  among  the  ancients  who  had  murdered  any  person  believed 
that  the  wiping  their  swords,  or  any  other  weapon  they  had  used,  on  the 
head  of  the  deceased,  v/ould  prevent  his  avenging  spirit  from  having  pow- 
er upon  them.  The  cutting  off  and  wearing  under  their  arms  a  piece  of 
flesh  taken  from  the  dead  body  was  also  thought  a  spell  of  Uke  influence. 

^  "  It  hath  been  observed  that  the  ceremony  of  cutting  ofl'  the  hair, 
while  it  was  obviously  expressive  of  violent  emotion,  had  a  latent  mean- 
ing couched  under  it.  As  the  hair  was  cut  oft"  from  the  head,  never  more 
to  be  united  to  it,  so  were  the  dead  cut  oft'  from  the  livino-,  never  more  to 
return.  This  usage  was  not  confined  to  the  heathen  world.  It  is  taken 
notice  of  in  Scripture  :  Ezekiel,  describing  a  great  lamentation,  says, 
'  They  shall  make  themselves  utterly  bald  for  thee  :'  c.  xxvii.  31."  Notes 
to  Trans.  Min.  Poet.  Q.  191. 

^  "  Defendi  potest  d?..i7Tap7j,  modo  ca  vox  significare  putetur  comam  non 
accommodatam  supplicaticni,  ut  quce  non  satis  compta  atque  nitide  ha- 
bita  sit." — Kerm. 


12:]  ELECTRA.  [477-520. 

lier  hands  righteous  niastciy :  she  will  pursue  them,  my  child, 
lit  i!0  distant  period.  Confidence  rises  v/ithin  me,  just  nov/ 
hearing  the  s\veetly -breathing  dreams.^  For  never  is  thy  par- 
ent the  kini!;  of  Greeks  forgetful  at  least,  nor  the  ancient  brazen 
two-edged  axe,  which  slew  him  with  most  shameful  insults. 
Also  shall  come  the  many-footed  and  many-handed  Erinnys  of 
brazen  tread,  that  is  concealed  in  dreadful  ambush.  For  an 
incestuous  unhallowed  rivalry  of  blood-defiled  nuptials  has 
come  upon  those  to  whom  it  was  unlawful.  For  these  deeds, 
of  a  truth,  it  holds  by  me  that  no  portent  can  ever,  ever  be 
come  upon  us  without  harm  to  either  the  doers  or  the  accom- 
plices. In  good  truth,  there  are  no  auguries  to  m.ortals  in 
alarming  dreams,  nor  in  oracles,  unless  this  apparition  of  the 
night  shall  anchor  at  last  in  good.^  O  toilsome  horsemanship 
of  Felops  in  old  time,  hov/  woeful  camest  thou  to  this  coun- 
try !  For  since  the  drowned  Myrtilus^  was  sent  to  [his  last] 
sleep,  hurled  headlong  forth  in  dire  insult  from  his  all-golden 
car,  no  calamity  of  many  troubles  hath  ever  yet  been  wanting 
to  this  house. 

Clyte3dje3tra.  Let  loose,  it  seems,  again  tliou  roamest ; 
for  -3i^gisthus  is  not  here,  who  ever  checked  thee  lest,  being 
abroad,  thou  shouldst  dishonor  thy  friends.  But  now,  as  he 
is  absent,  thou  heedest  not  me  at  least.  Nay,  more,  thou 
hast  actually  denounced  me  at  large  and  to  many,  as  that  I 

^  That  is,  to  the  party  of  Agamemnon,  in  proportion  as  they  came  un- 
welcome and  alarming  to  Clytemnestra. 

^  Musgrave  considers  the  latter  part  of  this  chorus  as  out  of  place  after 
the  promise  of  a  prosperous  fortune  to  the  house  of  xlgamcmnon.  Yet 
as  this  could  not  be  without  a  crime  ;  since  "  sanguine  qusrendi  redi- 
tus ;"  Hermann  defends  the  transition  made  to  the  primal  curse  of  the 
ill-starred  royal  family  of  Argos. 

^  Myrtilus,  son  of  Mercury  and  Phsctusa,  was  charioteer  to  Q^nomaus, 
king  of  Pisa,  the  father  of  Hippodamia,  whose  horses  he  rendered  the 
most  famous  for  their  swiftness  in  all  Greece.  This  it  was  which  pro- 
duced the  confidence  of  CEnomaus  in  challenging  his  daughter's  suitors 
to  the  chariot  race,  and  had  already  been  the  destruction  of  thirteen  chiefs, 
when  Felops  bribed  Myrtilus  with  a  promise  of  sharing  the  favors  of  Hip- 
podamia. Thus  allured,  he  gave  an  old  chariot  to  Q^nomaus,  which  broke 
down  in  the  course,  and  killed  him.  ^^'hen,  however,  Myrtilus  demand- 
ed the  reward  of  his  perfidy,  Pelops  threw  him  into  the  sea,  thus  exem- 
phfying  the  words  of  Shakespeare's  Henry  : 

"  Tho}''  love  not  poison,  that  do  poison  need  ; 
Nor  do  I  thee,  though  I  did  wish  him  dead. 
I  hate  the  murderer,  love  him  murdered." 


521—553.]  ELECTRA.  127 

am  impudent,  and,  contrarj^  to  justice,  am  the  aggressor  in 
insolence  to  thee  and  thine.^  Yet  have  I  no  insolence;  but 
bespeak  thee  evil'  by  being  so  often  slandered  by  thee.  For 
that  thy  father,  no  other  pretense  hast  thou  constantly,  fell 
by  my  hand.  My  hand  :  I  know  it  well,  I  have  no  denial  to 
make  of  this.  For  Justice  took  him  not  I  only,  which  thou 
oughtest  to  aid,  wert  thou  haply  in  thy  senses.  Since  this 
thy  father,  whom  thou  art  ever  wailing,  alone  of  Greeks 
could  bear^  to  sacrifice  to  the  gods  thine  own  sister,  though 
lie  suifered  not  from  pain,  when  he  begat  her,  equally  with 
me  that  bare  her.  Enough :  teach  me  now  for  whose  sake 
he  sacrificed  her.^  "Wilt  thou  say,  for  the  Greeks  ?  But  they 
had  no  claim  to  kill  my  daughter  at  least.  But  if  forsooth 
then  for  his  brother  Menelaus  lie  murdered  v/hat  was  mine, 
was  he  not  bound  to  give  me  due  satisfaction  ?  Had  not  he 
tvv'o  children,^  for  whom  to  die  was  more  reasonable  than  for 
her,  they  being  of  the  father  and  mother  for  whose  sake  was 
the  voyage?  What,  had  Hades  a  desire  of  my  children, 
rather  than  hers,  to  glut  herself  with  them  1  Or  was  affection 
for  his  children  by  mo,  neglected  by  their  abandoned  father, 
yet  remained  in  Menelaus?  "Were  not  these  the  acts  of  a 
witless  sire,  a  villain  in  purpose?  I  indeed  think  so,  even 
though  I  speak  contrary  to  thy  sentiments.  But  the  deceased 
at  least  would  say  so,  could  she  resume  her  voice.  I  then  am 
not  disheartened  at  what  I  have  done ;  but  if  I  seem  to  thee 
to  judge  amiss,  do  thou,  preserving  righteous  judgment,  re- 
proach those  near  of  kin.^ 

El.  Thou  wilt  not  now  at  least  assert  that  I,  having  com- 
menced with  some  offensive  w^ords,  have  then  heard  this  from 


^  Rermann  places  a  comma  after  apxcj,  not,  he  says,  because  the  read- 
ing adopted  by  Brunck  and  others  is  incorrect  (v.  Matth.  Gr.  Gr.  ^  549), 
but  because  irecpd  cliajg  apx(^  is  a  better  sequel  to  the  preceding  Opacua 
el/it. 

^  Cf.  ^-Esch.  Ag.  224 :  cT?.a  6'  ovv  dvrjip  yevscdac  dvyarphg. — B. 

^  Herm.  rov,  X'^P'-"'^  rlvog  tdv.  av.  "  In  return  for  what,  in  favor  to 
whom."     Thus  in  the  Nubes,  uvrl  before  rov  is  omitted,  v.  22, 

^  This,  says  the  scholiast,  though  it  militates  against  Homer's  account, 
is  in  'u  ion  ^vith  Hesiod's  : 

"H  T£Ke6'  'Ep/iii67]v  covpiK/.ctru  'Meve/.du, 
'0-7,6ra~ov  d'  trf/ce  ^^LKooTparov,  opov  'Aprjog. 


*  i.  c,  'by  father. 


128  ELECTRA.  [554—587. 

thee;  ]jut,  wouldst  thou  permit  me,  I  would  rightly  argue  at 
cncc  in  behalf  of  the  deceased  and  my  sister. 

Cly.  x\ny,  then,  I  do  permit ;  but  hadst  thou  always  thus 
begun  thine  address  to  me,  thou  hadst  not  been  oftensive  to 
listen'to. 

El.  AVell,  then,  to  thee  I  speak.  Thou  ownest  thou  killed 
my  father.  Than  thi^  what  confession  could  be  yet  more 
base,  whether  in  fine  with  justice  or  without?  But  I  will 
prove  to  thee  that  thou  didst  not  slay  him  with  justice  at 
least;  but  persuasion  from  a  villain,  with  whom  thou  now 
companiest,  allured  thee  to  it.  Kay,  ask  the  huntress  Diana, 
in  revenge  for  what  those  many  winds  detained  them  at  Aulis  ; 
or  I  will  tell  thee,  for  from  her  it  is  not  allowed  thee  to  learn. 
My  father  once,  as  I  hear,  sporting  in  the  groves  of  the  god- 
dess, roused  en  foot  a  dappled,  antlered  stag,  in  whose 
slaughter  exulting,- he  chanced  to  utter  some  [haughty]  word.^ 
And,  thenceforth  angered,  the  maiden  daughter  of  Latona  de- 
tained the  Greeks,  that  my  father,  as  satisfaction  for  the  beast, 
should  oifer  up  his  daughter.  Thus  was  her  sacrifice  ;  since 
no  other  release  was  there  to  the  host,  homeward  or  to  Troy. 
On  whose  behalf,  having  been  forcefully  constrained,  and 
having  resisted  much,  he  reluctantly  saciificed  her,  not  for 
Menelaus's  sake.  If,  however,  for  I  will  state  even  thy  plea, 
wishing  to  profit  him,  he  acted  thus,  ought  he  for  this  to 
have  died  by  thy  hands'?  By  what  right?  Beware,  lest  in 
ordaining  to  mankind  this  rule,  thou  ordain  thyself  woe  and 
repentance.  For  if  we  shall  slay  one  for  another,  thou,  mark 
me,  shouldst  die  the  first,  at  least  hadst  thou  thy  due.  But 
look  to  it,  lest  thou  set  up  a  plea  that  does  not  exist.  For 
tell  me,  an  thou  wilt,  in  requital  of  what  thou  happenest  at 
present  to  be  committing  deeds  the  most  infamous  possible ; 
thou  that  couchest  with  the  assassin,  with  whom  thou  erst 

^  The  business  of  the  ancient  poets,  and,  till  very  lately,  of  our  own, 
has  eonslantly  been  to  inculcate  submission  to  the  will  of  Heaven,  and 
respect  for  all  thintrs  more  immediately  connected  with  it.  In  conformity 
to  this  proposed  object,  insolence  to  Minerva  is  stated  by  Calchas  to  be 
the  cause  of  Ajax's  madness  ;  and  the  wound  inflicted  on  Venus  by  I)i- 
omed  leads  to  his  expulsion  from  liis  home  by  an  unfaithful  wife  ;  while 
the  still  more  audacious,  because  the  more  personal,  insults  to  tlie  deities 
ciTered  by  Laomedop.,  lay  the  towers  of  liium,  the  work  of  more  tlian  hu- 
man hando,  in  the  dust.  Nor  was  the  prince  of  lyric  poets  less  reUgious 
than  the  t  a-edians  :   vid.  01.  9,  5G. 


533—611]  ELECTRA.  129 

didst  destroy  my  father,  and  luist  cliildren  by  liim  ;^  while  thy 
former  lawful  progeny,  from  lawful  lineage  sprung,  thou  cast- 
est  out.  How  could  I  approve  of  this?  Wliat,  ^v-ilt  tl^ou  say 
that  this  too  is  vengeance  thou  takest  for  thy-daugliterf-  Base- 
ly, even  shouidst  thou  say  so  ;  for  it  is  not  honorable  to  marry 
with  enemies  for  the  sake  of  a  daughter.  Hut  it  is  not  allow- 
ed even  to  advise  thee,  thee,  that  ventest  thy  whole  talk  of 
how  I  slander  my  mother.  Nay,  I  at  least  account  thee  a 
mistress  rather  than  a  mother  to  us,  I  that  live  a  wearisome 
life,  ever  treated  with  evil  from  thee  and  thy  paramour  ;  while 
the  other  ftar  away,  having  hardly  escaped  thy  hand,  hapless 
Orestes,  wears  out  a  melancholy  existence,  whom  thou  hast 
often  accused  me  of  bringing  up  as  an  avenger  of  thy  pollu- 
tion ;  and  this,  had  I  had  power,  I  had  done,  of  this  be  well 
assured.  For  this  at  least  proclaim  me  to  all,  whether  thou 
wilt  as  wicked,  or  abusive,  or  full  of  impudence ;  for  if  I  am 
naturally  an  adept  in  these  practices,  I  am  almost  no  disgrace 
whatever  to  thy  nature. 

Cii.  I  see  her  breathin;:^  racre ;  but  whether  or  no  it  exist 
with  justice,-^  of  this  I  see  no  farther  thought. 

}.oi5op7iaaL 
diovg,  tx^po,  aocpla  ■  koI 
TO  Kai'xaadat  Tzapa  naipov 
Maviaiatv  vrroKpiKei,. 

Hence  we  see  thtit  it  wanted  but  little  supernatural  influence  to  drive  Ajax 
to  the  phrensy  with  which  he  was  afterward  possessed. 

^  Pausanias  mentions  Erigone,  a  daughter  of  ^Egisthus,  of  whom 
Tzetzes  ad  Lycoph.  1374,  plainly  calls  Clytemnestra  the  mother. — Herm. 

^  Euripides  strengthens  this  plea  by  the  addition  of  another,  which  the 
ladies  will  think  more  forcible,  viz.,  that  Agamemnon  kept  another  wom- 
an, and  even  brought  her  into  the  house  with  his  wife.  This  fact  is  thus 
alluded  to  by  Ovid  : 

"  Dum  fuit  Atrides  una  contentus,-  et  ilia 
Casta  fuit :  vitio  est  improba  facta  viri." — Franklin. 

^schylus  also  mentions  the  arrival  of  Cassandra  at  Argos,  and  her  proph- 
ecies of  her  own  and  Agamemnon's  fate.  Indeed,  the  Grecian  chiefs  iq 
general  appear  to  have  so  Uttle  observed  conjugal  fidelity,  that  their  wives' 
treachery  hardly  need  be  referred  to  the  wrath  of  Venus,  or  any  other 
deity.  Ulysses  alone  (his  loves  with  the  goddesses  must  be  excused  on 
the  score  of  influence  beyond  human  power  to  counteract)  appears  to  have 
had  a  just  sense  (vid.  Od.  I.  433)  of  decorum  in  this  particular,  and  ac- 
cordino-lv  his  wife  continues  faithful  to  him  throufjhout. 

^  Hermann  corrects  the  scholiast's  interpretation  thus:  ''but  whether 
Electra  justly  harbors  anger,"  ^vvean,  scil.  rcj  jievsi. 

F  2 


130  ELECTRA.  [612—037. 

Cly.  "VYliv,  v.hat  thought  sh.ould  I  have  about  her  at  least, 
who  in  such  terms  hath  insulted  her  mother,  and  that  too  at 
such  an  age?^  "What,  does  she  not  seem  to  thee  likely  to  jDro- 
ceed  to  any  crime  without  shame  ? 

El.  Be  now  well  assured  that  I  feel  shame  at  all  this,  even 
though  I  seem  not  to  thee  so  to  do ;  and  I  am  conscious  that 
I  act  as  disbecomes  both  my  age  and  myself — but  alas !  for 
thy  enmity  and  thy  crimes  compel  me  to  act  thus  perforce, 
since  by  the  base  are  base  deeds  taught. 

Cly.  O  shameless  creature !  doubtless  I,  and  my  words,  and 
my  deeds  cause  thee  to  speak  a  great  deal  too  much. 

El.  Thou  speakest  them,  not  I ;  for  thou  doest  the  deed, 
and  deeds  find  themselves  words. 

Cly.  But  never,  no,  by  Queen  Diana,-  shalt  thou  go  unpun- 
ished for  this  insolence,  when  ^gisthus  shall  retur^i.^ 

El.  Seest  thou?  thou  art  hurried  off  into  rage,  though  hav- 
ing given  me  leave  to  say  whatever  I  might  wish ;  nor  know- 
est  hov/  to  listen. 

Cly.  Vfiit  thou  not  then  suffer  me  even  to  sacrifice  amid 
sounds  of  good  omen,^  now  that  I  have  allowed  thee  at  least 
to  say  thy  all  ? 

El.  I  suffer,  I  bid  thee,  sacrifice ;  nor  blame  my  lips,  since 
I  will  speak  no  farther. 

Cly.  Then  do  thou,  that  art  here  with  me,  take  up  the 
offerings  of  various  fruits,  that  to  this  king  I  may  offer  up 
vows  for  deliverance  from  the  terrors  which  now  I  feel.     Now 

^  It  is  hard  to  say  whether  this  is  meant  as  a  reproach  to  Electra's 
youth  or  maturer  age.  The  context  seems  to  intimate  the  former,  but  the 
probable  age  of  Orestes  the  latter. 

^  Electra  having  in  a  former  passage  declared  that  her  mother,  as  a 
murderess  and  adulteress,  was  unfit  to  inquire  aught  of  the  goddess  of 
chastity,  by  this  oath  Clytemnestra  means  to  contradict  her. 

^  Take  ovk  a?.v^£ig  here  as  equivalent  to  ovk  tlEeig  uTiv^lv,  and  under- 
stand a7.v^L^,  not  in  a  passive  but  an  active  sense  ;  not  "  effugium  ejus 
qui  eflugitur,"  but  "  effugium  ejus  qui  effugit." — Herm. 

*  This  is  well  known  to  have  been  a  point  of  great  importance  among 
the  Greeks.  Ulysses,  relating  the  cause  of  Philoctetes'  expulsion  from 
the  army,  says, 

or'  ovTE  ?.otPf/g  rjfuv,  ovte  Ovfidruv 

Tzapyv  iKrJAoig  Trpoadiyeiv,  uX?J  dyptaig  i 

Karelx'  ^^^  ^"^  arpaTuTredov  dva^rjfica  g. — Phil.  v.  8. 

Hermann,  however,  takes  ev(p/^/iGV  j3o7/g  to  mean  merely  silence,  as  in  the 
CEdipus  Coloneus,  v.  132. 


637— G72.J  ELECTRA.  131 

mayest  thou  hear,  Apollo  our  protector,  my  concealed  address. 
For  my  speech  is  not  before  friend^',  nor  suits  it  to  unfold  all 
to  light,  while  she  is  close  beside  me,  lest  with  malice  and 
babblinsf  clamor  she  circulate  an  idle  tale  throujihout  the 
town.i  But  hear  me  thus,  for  thus  will  I  address  thee.  The 
apparitions  of  a  twofold  dream  that  I  have  this  night  beheld,^ 
these  grant  me  accomplished,  O  Lyccean  king,  if  propitious 
to  me  they  have  appeared,  but  if  hostile,  let  them  recoil  on 
my  fjcs.  And  if  any  by  treachery  are  plotting  to  expel  me 
from  my  present  good  fortune,  permit  it  not ;  but  grant  that 
I,  ever  living  a  life  thus  unharmed,  may  sway  the  Atrida^'s 
palace  and  this  sceptre,  in  happy  hour  consorting  with  those 
of  my  friends  with  whom  I  now  consort,  and  as  many  of  my 
children,  as  from  whom  no  ill  will  attaches  to  mte,  nor  bitter 
annoyance.  This,  O  Lyca^an  Apollo,  favorably  hearing,  grant 
to  all  of  us,  even  as  v/e  ask ;  but  all  the  rest,  though  I  be  si- 
lent, I  deem  thou  knowcst,  as  being  a  god.^  For  it  is  meet 
that  the  race  of  Jove  sees  ail  thinfrs. 

Att.  Stranger  females,  how  might  I  surely  know  if  this  be 
the  palace  of  the  king  ^gisthus? 

Cii.  This  is,  O  stranger.     Thyself  hast  rightly  conjectured. 

Att.  And  am  I  right  in  guessing  also  that  this  is  his  wife  ? 
For  she  is  dignified  as  a  sovereign  to  look  on. 

Cii.  Most  certainly  of  all.     This  is  she,  here  before  thee. 

Att.  Hail,  O  queen.  I  come  bringing  to  thee  pleasant  tid- 
ings, and  to  ^-Egisthus  alike,  from  a  friend. 

CiA'.  I  accept  the  uttered  omen.  But  first  of  all  I  wish  to 
know  of  thee,  who  of  mankind  dispatched  thee. 

Att.  Phanoteus  the  Pliocian  ;  forvv'arding  an  important 
matter. 

Cly.  Of  wdiat  kind,  stranger  ?  say  ;  for  being  from  a  friend, 
I  am  w^ell  assured  thou  v,  iit  speak  friendly  words. 

^  Thus  Virgil :         " Hinc  spargere  voces 

In  vulgum  ambiguas." — ^neid  II. 

^  "  ^lggQv,  duplicium  id  est  ambiguorum.  Sic  Lucianus  in  Alexandre, 
p.  218  :  SiTTOvg  rwag  kol  d/KpiBo/iovg  Kal  lo^ovg  xPV<^/^ovc  (Tvyyu(pcjv.'' — 
Brunck.  It  may,  however,  be  an  allusion  to  the  vision  which  ^schylus 
has  related. 

2  Similarly  the  Chorus  in  (Edipus  Tyrannus  : 

'A/L/V  6  ficv  ovv  Zeiig,  6  r'  'A-:t6?.?.uv 

^vverot,  Kal  to.  ippordv 

EMJref.  V.  498. 


•J  32  ELECTRA.  [673—697. 

Att.  Orestes  is  dead :  I  speak  compressing  it  in  brief. 

El.  Unhappy  me !   this  day  am  1  undone. 

Cly.  What  sayest  thou,  what  sayest  thou,  stranger?  heed 
not  her. 

Att.  Now,  as  before,  I  dechire  that  Orestes  is  dead. 

El.  Wretched  I  am  lost.     I  am  no  longer  aught. 

Cly.  Look  tliou  to  thine  own  alfairs ;  but  do  thou,  stranger, 
tell  me  the  truth  ;  in  what  way  perishes  he  ? 

Att.  And  for  this  I  was  sent,  and  I  will  tell  the  whole. 
For  he  having  come  to  the  glorious  pageant  of  games  of 
Greece,^  for  the  sake  of  Delphian  prizes,  when  he  heard  the 
loud  announcements  of  the  herald  proclaiming  previously  the 
race,  the  decision  of  which  comes  first,  entered  [the  listsj 
illustrious,  the  admiration  of  all  there  present.  And  having 
made  the  goals  of  the  course  even  with  the  starting-place,^  he 
went  forth,  carrying  the  all-honored  prize  of  victory.  And 
that  I  may  tell  thee  sparingly  amid  abundance,  I  have  not 
known  the  deeds  and  might  of  a  man  like  him.  But  know 
at  once  ;^  of  as  many  double  courses  as  the  umpires  pro- 
claimed the  five  prizes  which  are  customary,  of  these  obtaining 
all  the  meeds  of  victory,  he  was  hailed  happy,  announced  as 
an  Argive,  by  name  Orestes,  son  of  Agamemnon,  that  once 
assembled  the  fiimous  armament  of  Greece.  And  such  were 
these  events.     But  when  any  god  shall  afilict  him,  not  even 

'  Tho  Pythian  games  were  instituted  in  honor  of  Apollo's  victoiy  over 
the  serpent  Python,  and  are  thought  to  have  been  at  first  confined  to  a 
contest  of  musical  and  poetical  skill  in  hymning  the  praises  of  the  victor 
god.  The  6 tavXo^  here  mentioned  was  when  the  competitors  in  the  foot- 
race doubled  the  goal,  and  returned  to  the  starting-place.  The  7:i-vTaQ}.ov 
is  usually  supposed  to  be  comprised  in  the  celebrated  verse — 

'Alfia,  TToSuKeLTjv,  dloKov,  uKOvra,  7:d?.7]v. 

The  prizes  were  sacred  apples,  to  which  some  add  wreaths  of  laurel,  or, 
according  to  Ovid,  of  beech.  As  Pausanias  has  stated,  x.  7,  3,  that  most 
of  the  Pythian  rules  were  adopted  from  the  Olympic  games,  we  find 
"the  order  of  the  course,"  (ViavAor,  first  here. 

^  See  Brunck's  note.  Hermann's  better  taste  has  rejected  so  epigram- 
matic a  prettiness  as  that  of  Antipater  ;  and  he  justly  observes  that  Soph- 
ocles, in  saying  that  Orestes  made  his  starting-place  his  goal,  exactly  de- 
scribes the  6iavXo^. 

^  Hermann  has  a  comma  between  f^p6fiur>  and  ^,iav?.o)v,  and  considoro 
what  follows  as  equivalent  to  iTEvrdOAuv  u  vojil^craL. — Tn.  Dindorf  lias 
rightly  followed  Porson. — B. 


698—720.]  ELECTRA.  133 

the  strong  man  could  escape.  For  he  on  a  following  claj,^ 
Aviien  at  sunrise  there  was  a  swift  contest  of  horsemanship, 
came  in  with  many  a  charioteer.  One  was  an  Achaean,  one 
from  Sparta,  two  were  Libyans  drivers  of  yoked  chariots ; 
and  he  among  them  the  hfth,  guiding  Thessalian  steeds,  the 
sixth  from  ^toha  with  chestnut  filhes,  the  seventh  a  Magne- 
sian,  the  eighth,  with  Avhite  horses,  an  -3!^nian  by  race,  the 
ninth  from  the  god-erected  Athens,  the  other  a  Boeotian, 
hlhng  up  the  tale  of  ten  chariots.-  But  having  taken  their 
stand  where  the  appointed  umpires  had  thrown  for  them  with 
lots,  and  ranged  their  chariots,  at  the  sound  of  the  brazen 
trumpet  they  started,  and  all  at  once  in  concert  cheering  on 
their  horses  shook  the  reins  in  their  hands :  the  whole  course 
within  was  filled  Avith  the  noise  of  rattling  chariots;-^  the  dust 
was  tossed  on  hish ;  while  all  tooether  in  confusion  were 
sparing  nouglit  of  the  lash,  that  each  might  get  beyond  the 
other's  wheels,^  and  snortings  of  their  steeds,  for  the  breath- 
ings of  their  horses  were  at  once  falling  npon  and  covering 
with  foam  their  backs  and  the  circles  of  their  wheels.  But 
he   keeping   under   tlio  very  last   column,^  continually  w^as 

^  Translators  and  ccn}n?e.ntators  agree  in  considering  uJ.^.oq  here  as 
synonymous  with  dtvrzpoq  (the  Latins  have  the  same  idiom,  as  in 
Cicero  ;  xinus,  alter,  tcrthis)  ;  but  as  it  is  not  certain  how  long  the  Pythian 
games  lasted,  this  appears  a  gratuitous  assumption.     Certainly  Poppo,  in 

his  note  on  Thucyd.  III.  59,  denies  the  converse  : "  provocat 

enim  ad  Pind  Olymp.  I.  G9,  ubi  postquara  Pelops  dictus  est  a  Neptuno 
raptus  atquc  in  Jovis  domum  traductus  esse,  subjicitur : 

"Y.vOa  devTtpc)  XP^'^'^ 
''H/.Oe  Kol  Vavv/LiTJdrjg. 

Quo  in  loco  quura  scholiasts  multas  turbas  movissent,  Ganymedem  Pe- 
lopc  priorem  fuisse  dicentes,  Heynius  devrtpo)  XP^'^V  positum  esse  voluit 
pro  u?./.(i)  xpo't'V^  quod  satis  rcfutavit  Bocckius,  quern  vide  in  Notis  Criti- 
cis,  p.  346.  Aeirepog  enim  nonnisi  ibi  usurpari  potest,  ubi  de  duobus 
sermo  est,  ideoque  non  cum  uA?.og  sed  cum  erepog  cohaeret ;  a  quo  tamen 
ita  diiTert,  ut  irepor  unum  ex:  duobus  eignificet  sine  ulla  vel  temporis  vel 
ordinis  sive  dignitatis  notatione,  unde  unus  ille  et  prior  et  posterior  esse 
potest,  devrepog  autem  nonnisi  de  posteriore  plerumque  dicatur :"  p.  63. 
— Tr.     See  Liddell  and  Scott,  s.  v.  cAAof,  no.  7. — B. 

^  Hence  v/e  learn  the  number  allowed  to  run  at  the  Pythian  games  at 
one  time. 

^  Quadrijugcs  currus.  —  Brunck.  "The  harnessed  car."  —  Potter. 
"  7iEvyo)Tuv. — Hesychius.     ^vyucu — /v/,fiC7«."— Musgra^e. 

*  XvoaL  are  properly  the  sockets  into  which  the  axle-tree?  ^rt^  put 

°  iax^TJ]  cT7j}.T}  is  the  last  in  ordeV  oi  Rtveral  colui:n;s  o/  obftU-sks 


134  ELECTRA.  [721—740. 

wheeling  in  his  axle's  nave,  and  giving  rein  to  tlic  right  steed, 
held  in  the  near  horge.  And  hitherto  all  the  chariots  contin- 
ued upright ;  but  then  the  hard-mouthed  steeds  of  the  .zEnian 
run  away  with  him,  and  in  turning  at  the  completion  of  tlie 
sixth,  and  now  on  the  seventh  course,^  they  dash  their  fronts 
on  the  Barccean  car.^  And  thenceforth,  from  a  single  mishap, 
one  was  -crushing  and  tumbling  on  another,  and  the  wlioie 
Crissa2an  plain  was  being  filled  with  the  wrecks  of  shattered 
chariots.  But  the  skillful  charioteer  from  Athens,  aware  of 
this,  drives  by  outside  them,  and  slackens  speed,  having  suf- 
fered to  pass  him  the  tossing  tide  of  horses  confounded  in  the 
centre.  But  Orestes  was  driving  the  hindmost,^  indeed, 
but  keeping  back  his  coursers,  placing  his  trust  in  the  issue. 
Bat  the  other,  when  he  sees  him  left  alone,^  having  cracked  in 
the  ears  of  his  swi(t  m.ares  the  shrill  sound  of  his  whip,  pur- 
sues him ;  and  having  brought  their  poles  in  line,  they  were 
driving,  now  one,  and  then  the  other,  pushing  forAvard  the 
heads  of  their  chariot  horses.  And  all  tlie  other  courses  in 
safety  the  hapless  youth  drove  erect  in  his  car  upright ;  but 
tlien,  slackening  the  left  rein  of  his  wheeling  horse,  he  una- 
wares strikes  the  pillar's  edge,^  and  breaks  the  middle  axle- 
nave,  is  tumbled  from  his  chanot,  and  entangled  in  his  reins, 
while  on  his  falling  to  the  ground  his  steeds  were  dispersed 
over  the  middle  of  the  course.     But  the  assembly,  when  it 

erected  in  the  Hippodrome,  and  does  not,  as  some  have  supposed,  allude 
to  the  last  turn  round  the  goal.  See  Hermann's  dissertation  on  the  words 
used  by  the  Greeks  to  express  the  movements  of  horses,  Beckii  Conmi. 
See.  Phil.  vol.  i.  part  i.  p.  49,  and  Bulcnger  de  Circo  Rom.  c.  29,  in 
Grffivius,  Thesaur.  Ant.  Rom.  t.  9. 

'  Hcruiann  understands  i-ttol  here,  agreeing  Vt'ith  the  masculine  re- 
?^ovvTcg. 

-  This  is  an  anachronism.     V.  Herod,  iv.  IGO. 

^  Monk  translates  this,  "  Now  Orestes  drove  the  last  to  be  sure,  but 
keeping  his  horses  back,  as  he  placed  his  confidence  in  the  end  of  the 
race." 

*  "  The  sclioliasts  do  not  state  v.hom  they  understand  to  be  meant  by 
u  (5t'  and  vtv  respectively.  Later  interpreters  refer  the  former  to  Orestes, 
the  latter  to  the  Athenian  ;  but  in  that  case  one  would  have  expected 
tr.eZvnv  rather  than  vtv,  which  last  must  a})ply  to  the  principal  subject  of 
discourse  ;   and  that  subject  is  Orestes." — Herni. 

*  As  his  other  instructions  agree  with  the  ])lan  pursued  by  Orestes,  so 
this  is  the  accident  against  which  Nestor  particularly  warns  Antilochus, 
11.  xxiii.  v.  334. 


750—787]  .  ELECTRA.  135 

perceives  him  tliro'.vn  cut  of  his  sent,  shrieked  aloud  over  the 
youth,  that,  after  having  done  such  deeds,  he  meets  with  such 
a  disaster,  whirled  along  on  the  ground,  and  then  again  tossing 
up  his  limbs  to  heaven  :  until  the  charioteers  liaving  with  dif- 
ficulty stopped  the  horses'  speed,  released  him,  all  bloody,  so 
that  none  of  his  friends  by  looking  on  him  could  have  recog- 
nized his  hapless  person.  And  having  forthwith  burned  him 
on  the  pyre,  in  a  little  brazen  urn  a  huge  body  of  melancholy 
ashes-  are  appointed  men  of  Phocis  bringing,  that  he  may 
inherit  a  tomb  in  his  fatlier's  land.  Such,  look  you,  are 
these  tidings,  as  in  story  told,-  piteous,  but  to  us  eye-witness- 
es that  saw  it,  the  greatest  of  all  misfortunes  that  I  ever 
beheld. 

Cii.  Alas  !^  alas!  It  seems  then  the  whole  race  of  our  for- 
mer lords  from  its  very  roots  has  perished. 

Cly.  O  Jove,  whether  shall  I  call  these  news  fortunate  7  or 
terrible,  yet  gainful  ?  yet  'tis  a  painful  case,  if  by  mine  own  ills 
I  save  my  life. 

Att.  But  why,  lady,  art  thou  so  dispirited  at  my  present 
words  ? 

Cly.  'Tis  a  dreadud  thing  to  be  a  mother ;  for  not  even  to 
the  ill-treated  does  hatred  to  those  she  has  borne  attach. 

Att.  It  seems  then  we  are  come  in  vain. 

CiA\  No,  believe  me,  not  in  vain  at  least ;  for  how  couldst 
thou  tell  me  in  vain  ?  if  thou  earnest  possessing  sure  proofs 
of  his  death,  who  born  of  my  life,  an  alien  from  my  breast 
and  nurture,  estranged  himself  in  exile,  and  since  he  quitted 
this  land  never  beheld  me,  but  laying  to  my  charge  his  father's 
murder,  was  ever  threatening  to  perform  dreadful  deeds,  so 
that  neither  by  night  nor  by  day  did  sweet  sleep  overshadow 
nie ;  but  progressing  time  ever  led  m.e  on  as  doomed  to  die. 
Now,  however  (for  on  this  day  am  I  released  from  alarm  at 
her  hands  and  his,  since  she  the  greater  pest  was  living  vdth 
me,  ever  drinking  up  my  pure  life's  blood),  now  haply  shall  we 
pass  our  d;i3"3  in  quiet,  as  far  as  relates  to  her  threats.-^ 

^  Thus  Hermann,  rejecting  both  Brunck's  idea  of  antiptosis  and  Scliae- 
fer's  construction  of  x'^^^'^'?  crrrodo?. 

^  Simiiariy  the  messenger  in  (Edipus  Tyrannus,  v.  1237 : 

a/.ycar'  uttegtlv  ij  yap  otjng  ov  Tcdpa. 
'  "  Ma'c  Brunckius  f5'  post  vov  delevit,  quod  rcpeti  post  parenthcsin 
notavi  ad  Vigcrum,  p.  847.     Conipare  -Esch.  Chocph.  621-629.'' — Kerm. 


136  ELECTRA.  [788—818. 

El.  All  me,  unhappy !  for  now  'tis  mine  to  wail,  Orestes, 
thy  misfortune,  that  thus  conditioned  thou  art  insulted  by  this 
thy  mother ;  is  this  well  ? 

Cly.  Not  with  thee,  be  sure ;  but  he,  as  he  is,  is  well. 

El.   Hear,  avenging  spirit  of  the  lately  dead.^ 

Cly.  It  hath  heard  whom  it  ought,  and  well  fulfilled  the 
prayer. 

El.  Be  insolent ;  for  now  thy  lot  is  prosperity. 

Cly.  So  shall  not  Orestes  and  thou  repress  it. 

El.  We  have  been  put  down  ourselves,  on  fear  that  we 
shall  put  thee  down. 

Cly'.  Thou  wouldst  become  deserving  of  many  things, 
stranger,  hadst  thou  checked  her  babbling  clamor.- 

Att.  I  would  be  gone  then,  if  this  be  well. 

Cly'.  By  no  means ;  since  thou  wouldst  be  about  to  act  in  a 
manner  worthy  neither  me  nor  the  friend  that  sent  thee.  But 
go  ye  within,  and  leave  her  to  lament  from  without  both  her 
own  and  her  friend's  calamities. 

El.  And  does  the  wretched  woman  seem  to  you,  as 
grieving  and  in  pain,  bitterly  to  weep  and  wail  over  her  son 
thus  perished  ?  Ko,  in  derision  is  she  gone.  O  unhappy 
me !  Dearest  Orestes,  how  by  thy  death  hast  thou  undone 
me !  for  thou  are  gone,  and  hast  torn  from  my  heart  the  only 
hopes  that  yet  remained  to  me,  that  thou  wouldst  one  day 
come  a  living  avenger  of  my  father  and  of  me  ill-fated.  But 
.now  whither  must  I  go?  for  I  am  lonely,  bereft  of  both  thee 
and  mv  father.  Now  must  I  ajiain  be  a  slave  to  those  amons 
men  most  hateful  to  me,  the  murderers  of  my  sire.  And  is 
this  well  with  me?  But  no,  never  again  hereafter  will  I  be 
their  co-mate,^  but  at  this  gate  having  thrown  myself  along, 

^  Nemesis,  daughter  of  Xox,  anfl  by  some  supposed  to  be  the  same  with 
Leda,  was  intrusted  with  the  care  of  avenging  all  manner  of  impieties,  but 
especially  those  committed  against  the  dead.  It  was  in  this  latter  char- 
acter that  Adrastus,  in  his  second  expedition  to  Thebes,  to  avenge  the  re- 
fusal of  burial  to  his  son-in-law  Polynices,  erected  a  temple  to  her.  The 
Greeks  also  celebrated  a  feast  in  her  honor,  called  Nemcsia. 

^  Hermann  refers  to  Matth.  Gr.  Gr.  ()  524,  for  the  construction  of  this 
passage,  defending  the  common  reading  against  Monk's  remarks  in  Mus. 
Grit. 

^  Brunck's  reading  t:Gaoj£  is  an  elision  unknown  to  the  tragic  dialogue  : 
^vvoLKoq  taouai  may  be  read,  according  to  Hermann,  with  a  hiatus  :  lie 
himself  reads  etGei/x' ;  Monk  and  others,  tao/uai  ^vvoiKog.     ^'■Scd  transpo- 


819—81-1.]  ELECTRA.  I37 

friendless  "vvill  I  Avlther  away  life.  AVherefore,  let  any  of  those 
within  slay  me,  if  he  be  oftended,  since  'tis  pleasure  if  I  die, 
"pain  if  I  live,  and  for  life  I  have  no  wish. 

Cii.  Where  can  be  the  thunderbolts  of  Jx)ve,^  or  where  the 
beaming  sun,  if  looking  on  these  things  they  silently  hide?^ 

El.  O!  O!  alas!  alas! 

Cri.  My  child,  why  weepest  thou  ? 
^    El.  Alas! 

Cii.  Sob  not  thus  violently. 
I    El.  Thou  wilt  kill  me. 

Cu.  How'? 

El.  If  thou  shalt  suggest  a  hope  for  those  who  have  mani- 
festly sunk  into  the  grave,  thou  wilt  the  rather  trample  on  me 
wasting  away. 

Ch.  I  did  it,  for  that  I  know  that  royal  Amphiaraus  was 
ensnared  by  stealth  in  the  golden- wreathed  fetters  of  a  woman,^ 
and  now  beneath  the  earth — 

El.  O!  alas!  alas! 

Ch.  Immortal  he  reiirns. 

El.  Alas! 

Ch.  Alas,  indeed !  for  she  deathful — 

El.  Was  over-mastered  1 

ncndi  ratio,  hodje  est  tnstar  aciiti  cultri  in  manilus  puerorum.^^ — Herm. — 
Tr.     Bat  Dindorf  retains  tc7(70//'. — B. 

^  *'  These  four  lines  must  be  restored  to  the  Chorus,  whose  claim  to 
them  is  irrefragable.  They  insinuate  a  ground  of  hope  for  Electra,  to 
which  she  alludes  in  v.  833.  The  exclamations  in  v.  827  are  Electra's." 
— Mus.  Grit.  i.  204. 

'  This  word  is  with  peculiar  fitness  applied  to  the  sun : 

Aelvov  yup  6eov  alSe  (Soeg  koI  l^ia  ////Aa, 
'HeAiOV,  bg  ttuvt^  i<popa  kol  ttu.vt'  eTzaKovei. 

Od.  xii.  322. 

'  The  story  of  Amphiaraus  bears  a  resemblance  to  that  of  Agamemnon. 
He  was  the  son  of  Oicleus,  and  the  greatest  soothsayer  of  his  time.  Fore- 
seeing the  fatal  issue  of  the  Theban  war,  he  would  have  declined  assist- 
ing Polynices,  and  hid  himself  for  some  time,  but  was  betrayed  by  his 
wife  Eriphyle,  whom  Polynices  had  bribed  with  a  golden  necklace,  and 
who,  lilie  Clytemnestra,  fell  by  her  son's  hand.  Although  Homer  hasj 
assigned  the  chief  place  among  deceased  prophets  to  Tiresias,  it  is  cer- 
tain that  high  honors  were  paid  to  Amphiaraus  after  death,  at  Oropus  in 
Attica,  where  he  had  a  temple. — Tr.  So  uva^  is  applied  to  Tiresias  in 
(Ed.  Tyr.  304.  On  Amphiaraus  cf  Pindar  01.  VI.  21.  Apollodor.  IIL 
6,  2.  His  oracle  is  mentioned  by  Cicero  de  Div.  I.  40.  Minutius  FeliXf 
Oct.  <J  26.     Athcr.agoras,  legat.  p.  139.— B. 


138  ELECTRA.  [845—880. 

Cii.  Yes. 

El.  I  know  it,  I  know  it ;  for  a  careful  friend  arose  to  him 
in  sorrow ;  but  to  me  there  is  no  longer  any,  for  he  Avho  yet 
existed  is  torn  away  and  gone. 

Cii.  Wretched,  thou  hast  a  wretched  fate. 

El.  I  too  am  conscious,  too  conscious  of  this  by  a  life  which 
every  month  sweeps  in  a  mass  of  many  things  grievous  and  de- 
testable.^ 

Ch.  We  know  all  that  thou  bewailest. 

El.  No  more,  no  more  now  mislead  me,  where  no  more- — 

Cii.  What  say  est  thou  ? 

El.  Are  present  the  aids  of  hopes  of  kindred  blood  and  high 
ancestry.-^ 

Cii.  Death  is  natural  to  all  mankind. 

El.  What,  and  in  the  rivalry  of  swift  steeds  thus  to  be  en- 
tangled in  the  reins,  like  him  wretched  ? 

Cii.  The  misfortune  is  inconceivable. 

El.  How  should  it  not?  if  in  a  foreign  land  without  my 
hands — 

Cii.  O  heavens ! 

El.  He  was  inurned,  having  met  with  neither  sepulture  nor 
dirse  from  us. 

CiiR.  With  joy,  my  best  beloved,  I  speed  me  hither,*  dis- 
missing decorum,  to  hasten  with  alacrity  ;  for  I  bring  both  joys 
and  resDite  from  the  ills  which  before  now  thou  didst  cherish 
and  sigh  over. 

El.  But  hence  couldst  tliou  discover  a  consolation  of  my 
troubles,  a  remedy  whereof  it  is  impossible  to  find  ? 

Chr.  Our  Orestes  is  at  hand,  be  sure  of  this,  hearing  it  of 
me,  as  certainly  as  thou  lookest  on  me. 

El.  What !  art  thou  frantic,  wretch,  and  mockest  thine  own 
woes  and  mine '? 

^  If  Hermann's  reading,  aluvt,  be  here  adopted  for  d;^;^^^  (as  7ra/ii/ii7jV(p 
Tzavavpru  can  not  well  stand  for  substantives,  if  without  the  article),  the 
reader  may  compare  Hermann's  explanation,  Tzdvcn'pTog  Truat  [itjcI,  with 
Thucyd.  2,  44,  ivevSai/LLOvTjaai  re  Kal  Ivre/.evTy/cat  riv  (Uov. 

^  Johnson,  and  after  him  Brunck,  unaccountably  translates  the  word 
Trapaydyyr  by  solcris,  to  which  Musgrave  Vv'ith  reason  objects,  and  ren- 
ders it  demulceas  verbis,  dccipias. 

^  dpcjyai,  Hermann,  from  the  scholiast. 

*  ?tiuch  of  the  beauty  of  this  scene  is  lost  to  us  in  tlie  closet ;  on  the 
stage  its  eiTect  must  have  been  wonderful. 


881—907.]  ELECTRA.  139 

Chr.  Ko,  by  my  fatlier's  hearth,  I  speak  not  this  in  insult, 
but  that  he  is  at  hand  to  us. 

El.  Ah  me  !  unhappy  !  and  from  whom  of  men  hearing  this 
tale,  believest  thou  this  fondlv  ? 

Chk.  From  myself  and  none  else,  having  seen  sure  proofs,  I 
believe  this  tale. 

El.  V»liat  proof  having  beheld,  unhappy  girl!  looking  on 
■vvliat,  say,  art  thou  heated  with  this  fever  of  the  soul  past 
cure'?^ 

CiiK.  Now,  by  the  gods,  listen,  that,  having  learned  of  me, 
thou  mayest  call  nic  henceforth  either  sensible  or  senseless. 

El.  Nay,  then,  do  thou  say  on,  if  thou  in  speaking  hast  any 
pleasure. 

CiiK.  Well  then,  I  tell  thee  all  that  I  behold.  For  when 
I  came  to  my  father's  ancient  tomb,  I  see  from  the  top  of  the 
mound  fresh-running  streams  of  milk,  and  my  sire's  grave 
garlanded  all  around  with  every  flower  that  grows.  But 
having  seen  tliis  I  began  to  feel  wonder,  and  gaze  around, 
lest  haply  any  mortal  be  stealing  close  upon  me.  But  when 
I  saw  the  whole  spot  tranquil,  I  crept  nearer  the  tomb,  and 
at  the  edge  of  the  pile  I  discern  a  fresh-cropped  lock  of  hair.^ 
And  the  instant  I  hapless  discovered  it,  an  accustomed  fancy 
strikes  upon  my  soul,  that  I  was  looking  on  this  a  memorial 
of  Orestes,  the  dearest  of  mankind,  and  raising  it  in  my  hands, 
I  speak  not  words  of  ill  omen,  but  for  joy  have  mine  eyes 
filled  instantly  ^vith  tears.^     And  now,  too,  equally  as  then,  I 

^  The  same  epithet  is  applieJ  to  the  madness  of  Ajax  : 
"  'E}cj  cci'  aTTclpycj,  dvc^opov^  l~'  o/ifiaat 
Tvujtag  j3a?MvGa,  tT/c  uvrjueGrav  x'^p'^C-''^ — v.  51. 
^  Schaefer  conjectured  Tzvpa.     Retain  the  genitive  and  join  it  with  opcj, 
a  summo  tumulo  conspicio  cincinnum,  according  to  the  Greek  fashion  of 
measLirement,  not  from  the  spectator  to  the  object  seen,  but  the  reverse. 
See  also  v.  882. — Herm. 

^  Brunck  translates  this,  voccm  quidem  compressi,  evidently  considering 
oo  cvo(p7]fj,ci)  as  equivalent  to  Ev^ijfiC)  in  its  second  sense.  Eut  Potter, 
■with  greater  reason  gives  it  thus  : 

"  And  from  mine  eves  pushed  tears :  account  not  these 
Omens  of  ill,  for  \.\\cy  were  tears  of  joy." 
Chrysothemis,  wiih  the  natural  anxiety  of  a  Greek  bringing  good  tidings, 
•explains  away  a  circumstance  which  might  change  their  nature,  even  be- 
fore she  states  what  that  circumstance  was.  But  that  it  was  considered 
in  general  of  ill  omen,  we  learn  from  Homer,  Od.  B.  XX. — Tr.  Apu- 
leius  Met.  p.  107,  ed.  Elm.  :  '•  ut  lacrymse  sspiculc  de  gaudio  prodcunt,  ita 
et  in  i'llo  nimio  pavorc  risum  nequivi  contincrc." — B. 


140  ELECTllA.  [908—942 

am  Fure  that  this  ornament  could  come  from  none  hut  him. 
For  to  ■\vliom  is  this  a  natural  duty,  save  at  least  to  thee  and 
me?  And  I  did  it  not,  this  I  ■well  know,  nor  again  didst 
thou.  For  how  shouldst  thou,  to  Vvhom  at  least  it  is  not  per- 
mitted with  impunity  to  quit  this  roof  even  to  [worsliip]  the 
gods?  But  of  my  mother,  too,  neither  is  the  S23irit  wont  to 
act  thus,  nor  had  she  done  it  unobserved :  no,  these  marks  of 
respect  are  from  Orestes.  Come,  my  dear  sister,  take  courage. 
To  the  same  persons  the  selfsame  genius  is  not  always  present. 
But  ours  v/as  ere  novv^  detestable,  3'et  haply  the  present  day 
v.'ill  be  the  confirmation  of  m^any  good  things. 

El.  Alas!  how  do  I  long  since  pity  thee  for  thy  infatua- 
tion ! 

Che.  3>ut  what  is  it  ?  do  I  not  speak  this  to  thy  delight  ? 

El.  Thou  knowest  neither  whither  on  earth  nor  whither  in 
thought  thou  art  hurried. 

Cue.  But  how  know  I  not  that  at  least  which  I  saw  plainly? 

El.  He  is  dead,  miserable  woman  ;  and  all  protection  to 
thee  from  him  is  vanished ;  look  not  to  him  at  least. 

Cue.  Unhappy  me !  from  whom  of  men  hast  thou  heard 
this? 

El.  From  one  who  was  near  at  hand  when  he  perished. 

Che.  And  where  is  this  man  ?  amazement  comes  over  me. 

El.  Within,  acceptable,  and  not  displeasing  to  my  mother. 

Che.  Unhappy  me  !  and  from  whom  among  men  could 
have  been  the  many  funeral  offerings  at  my  father's  tomb  ? 

El.  I  am  most  led  to  believe  that  some  one  placed  them 
there  as  memorials  of  the  deceased  Orestes. 

Cue.  Ah  ill-fortuned  !  while  with  joy  I  bringing  such  a  tale 
was  hastening,  not  knowing,  I  am  sure,  in  what  woe  we  were 
plunged  !^  But  now,  vv'hen  I  have  come,  I  find  the  previously- 
existing  evils,  and  fresh  ones  also. 

El.  Thus  it  is  with  thee ;  but  if  thou  v/ilt  be  persuaded  by 
me,  thou  shalt  lighten  the  weight  of  thy  present  affliction. 

Cue.  "What,  shall  I  ever  raise  the  dead? 

El.  That  at  least  is  not  what  I  said,  for  I  was  not  born  so 
senseless. 

Che.  What  then  dost  thou  require,  to  which  I  can  pledge 
myself. 

'  "Kpa  est  ergo,  quod  hie  in  media  oratione  cum  dolorc  additum. — Kernx 
ad  Aj.  1005. 


04a—074.]  ELECTRA.  141 

El.  That  thou  take  heart  to  execute  what  I  shall  advise. 

CiiK.  Nay,  if  there  be  any  profit  in  it  at  least,  I  will  not  re- 
ject it  from  me. 

El.  Observe,  without  trouble,  be  sure,  nothing  is  success- 
ful. 

CiiR.  I  do  observe.  I  will  lend  aid  in  all  whereunto  I  have 
strength. 

El.  Hear  tlien  now,  in  what  way  I  have  planned  to  effect 
it.  Tiiou  too  art  surely  aware  that  present  countenance  of 
friends  there  is  none  to  us,  but  Hades  has  taken  and  deprived 
us  of  them,  and  we  are  left  alone. ^  I  at  least,  wdiile  I  heard 
that  my  brother  v,^as  flourishing  in  life,  maintained  hopes  that 
he  would  one  day  come  as  avenger  of  my  father's  murder  -^ 
but  now,  since  he  is  no  more,  I  therefore  turn  to  thee,  that 
with  me  thy  sister  thou  wilt  not  be  reluctant  to  slay  the  per- 
petrator of  our  father's  murder,  ^gisthus.  For  I  must  con- 
ceal nought  from  thee  any  longer.  Since  how  long  wilt  thou 
continue  slothful?  with  a  view  to  v/hat  farther  rational  hope? 
who  hast  cause  to  sigh  being  deprived  of  the  possessing  of 
thy  sire's  v/ealth,  and  cause  to  sorrow,  so  long  a  time  growing 
old  unwedded  and  unbetrothcd.  And  do  not  any  longer  hope 
that  you  will  ever  obtain  these  things.  For  ^.gisthus  is  not 
so  imprudent  a  man  as  ever  to  suffer  thy  progeny  or  mine 
to  spring  up,  an  evident  annoyance  to  himself.'^  But  if  thou 
be  induced  by  my  counsels,  first  thou  wilt  reap  the  praise  of 
piety  from  thy  father  in  the  grave,  and  also  from  thy  brother, 
and  then  as  thou  wast  born,  thou  wilt  be  called  hereafter 
free,  and  wilt  gain  thyself  a  worthy  marriage.  For  every 
one  is  wont  to  have  re2:ard  to  wdiat  is  virtuous.  But  in  the 
report  at  least  seest  thou  not  what  high  renovvm  thou  wilt  at- 
tach to  thyself  and  to  me  by  being  persuaded  by  me  ?     For 

^  Hermann  here  defends  the  first  person  dual  against  Elmsley  and 
Monk ;  it  is  found  once  only  in  Homer,  II.  '^.  485,  where  Ehnsley  pro- 
posed to  read  TT^pi'liJ/asad',  once  besides  this  place  in  Sophocles,  at  Phil. 
1079.  where  also  Hermann  has  retained  the  dual : 

"Observa,  ^Egistho,  non  ciiam  matri,  necem  parare  Electram." — H. 

^  UpciKTup  is  properly  the  exactor  of  retribution. 

^  Thuc.  III.  40.  M-i-Ziora  6i  ol  iir]  ^vv  Trpo^aaa  rivj.  /ca.vwf  TTOtovvrcg 
t--e^tp\o!'Tat  icnl  dio.O.vvTai^  ~ov  Kivdvvov  ixbopujicvoL  rov  vrroAeinOfitvov 
tX^pov.  "  ?i'on  pi.t?m  rospexisse  Sophoclem  versum  pancmiacum  V7i~loq 
or  izarepa  Krr/ci>aQ  Traldag  Kara'Acimjc,  ut  Schaefero  videbatur  ia  Melct. 
Crit.  p.  r^b'."— Herm. 


142  ELECTIIA.  [97.")— 1004. 

who  of  towiismcn  or  strangers  bcholdin-r  us  will  not  wclcomo 
us  with  applauses  such  as  these '?  "  BeholJ,  friends,  these  Uvo 
sisters,  that  saved  their  father  s  house,  that  of  their  lives  un- 
sparing, took  the  lead  in  shiying  their  foes  who  once  were 
liigh  in  station ;  these  ought  we  to  love,  these  ought  all  to 
venerate,  these  all  to  honor,  both  at  the  festivals  and  in  the 
r.tatcs'  popular  assemblies,  in  reward  of  their  courage."^ 
Thus,  be  sure,  will  every  man  proclaim  of  us,  that  glory  sliall 
Uili  us  not,  alive  or  dead.  But,  my  beloved,  be  persuaded, 
join  in  toiling  for  thy  father  s  sake,  in  laboring  for  thy 
brother's,  respite  me  from  misery,  respite  thyself,  being 
assured  of  this,  that  "basely  to  live  is  base  for  the  nobly 
born." 

Cii.  In  words  like  these  precaution  is  a  help  both  to  the 
speaker  and  hearer. 

CiiK.  Yet  before  she  spake,  ladies,  had  she  chanced  to  bo 
other  than  perverse  of  thought,  she  had  preserved  that  caution, 
even  as  she  doth  not  preserve  it.  For  whither  possibly  turn- 
ing thine  eyes,  art  thou  at  once  arming  thyself  v>dth  such 
daring,  and  callest  on  me  to  support  thee  ?  Seest  thou  not '? 
thou  wert  born  a  woman,  and  no  man,  and  art  in  power  less 
strong  than  thine  opponents.  But  to  them  is  destiny  daily- 
propitious,  while  to  us  it  is  retrograde,  and  comes  to  noiight.-^ 
Who  then,  plotting  to  ensnare  such  a  man,  shall  be  let  off 
unpained  by  calam.ity?  Bev/arc  lest  faring  badly  we  work 
ourselves  v>'eighticr  evils,  if  any  one  shall  hear  these  words. 

^  "  Notvvithstandinfj  the  decent  rcser\-edncss  of  female  manners  in  an- 
cient  Greece,  the  virgins  were  not  only  allowed  to  be  present  at  certain 
religious  solemnities,  but  their  attendance  was  necessary  ;  they  formed  a 
distinguished  part  in  the  sacred  processions,  and  were  led  by  some  virgin 
of  the  highest  rank." — Potter.  In  Spain,  where  the  strictness  of  fcmule 
confinement  outdoes  even  that  of  ancient  Greece,  the  same  license  is  al- 
lowed on  the  festivals  of  particular  saints. 

^  The  desmon,  which  in  Socrates  supplied  the  office  of  common  sense, 
was  considered  by  the  ancients  as  a  being  of  an  intermediate  order  be- 
tween God  and  man  ;  being  synonymous  with  the  genii  (perhaps  origin- 
ally with  the  giants),  and  therefore  sprung  from  earth  {y:/)  previously  to 
the  creation  of  man  ;  they  were  supposed  to  control  by  their  inlluencc  the 
fortunes  of  the  human  race,  each  of  which  liad  his  particular  guardian 
povvcr,  who  knew  (AaT^fiuv)  all  his  actions,  and  furthered  or  prevented  his 
purposes.  From  this  probably  was  modified  the  llosicrucian  system. — 
Tr.  These  remarks  are  misapiilied.  No  allusion  to  guardian  genii  is  in- 
tended, and  daciiuv,  as  almost  every  where  ia  the  Tragedians,  luean*  for- 
tune.— 1), 


1005—1033.]  ELECTRA.  143 

For  it  neither  profits  nor  assists  us  auglit,  Iia\diig  gained  an 
honorable  fame,  to  perish  with  infamy  ;  for  'tis  not  death  that 
is  most  h-ateful,  but  \vhen  one  longing  to  die  then  have  not 
power  to  obtain  it.  But  I  conjure  thee,  ere  we  perish  utterly 
in  complete  destruction,  and  desolate  our  race,  repress  thy  pas- 
sion. And- what  has  been  said  I  will  preserve  for  thee,  undi- 
vulged  as  ineffectual ;  but  do  thou  thyself  at  least  after  so  long 
a  time  take  thought,  since  tliou  hast  no  power  to  submit  to  thy 
superiors.  1 

Cii.  Be  persuaded.  Tiiere  exists  not  to  man  a  profit  more 
desirable  to  gain  than  forethought  and  wisdom  of  mind. 

El.  Thou  hast  said  nothing  unlooked  for  ;  nay,  I  well  knew 
thou  wouldst  reject  v/hat  I  proposed.  But  by  me  alone  and 
single-handed  must  this  deed  be  done  ;  for  positively  I  will  not 
leave  it  unassayed  at  least. 

CiiK.  Alas !  would  thou  had  been  such  in  spirit  y/hen  our 
father  fell ;  for  thou  wouldst  have  accomplished  all. 

El,  Nay,  I  was  naturally  at  least  such,  but  at  that  time  of 
weaker  judgment. 

CiiR.  Practice  to  continue  such  in  mind  throughout  life. 

El,  As  not  purposing  to  co-operate  with  me  thou  advisest 
thus. 

CiiK.  Yes,  for  it  is  likely  that  one  who  takes  in  Land  to 
w^ork  ill  will  fare  ill. 

El.  I  envy  thee  thy  prudence,  but  abhor  thy  cowardice. 

Cmi.  I  fain  must  hear  you,  even  when  thou  shalt  commend 
m.e.- 

El.  But  think  not  from  me  at  least  thou  shalt  ever  meet 
Vv'ith  this. 

Ciui.  Nav,  future  time  is  lone;  Gnous!;h  to  decide  on  this. 

El.  Away,  for  there  is  in  thee  no  help. 

Chk.  There  is,  but  thou  hast  not  docility  to  learn  it. 

El.  Go  and  disclose  ail  this  to  thy  mother. 

^  'A?-?J  Ivvoelv  XPV  ~ovro  plv,  yvvalx'  on 

'Fj(pvij.ev,  cjf  irpuc;  uvSpag  ov  fiaxovfjeva' 
"E-ffra  6'  gvvck'  unxofJ-ecQ'  t/c  KpscaGovuv. — Ant.  v.  61. 

'  Schol.  LGTac  Kaipv^.,  ore  jus  evprjjUT/Gcic.  Potter  makes  the  sentence 
break  ofF  abruptly,  Vvhich  seems  contrary  to  the  practice  of  the  Greek 
poets,  the  connection  being  nowhere  afterward  resumed.  Hermann 
translates  it  thus  :  "  Oportebit  me  audire  te  etiam  laudantem  mores  mcos." 
Monk,  '•  Sustinebo  tc  audire,  etiamsi  mutas  orationem  et  probas  mores 
meos." 


144  ELECTRA.  [1034—10,'^^ 

CiiK.  Nay,  I  liacG  tlice  not  Avith  so  great  hatred. 

El.  Well,  then,  think  at  least  to  Avhat  infamy  thori  art  lead- 
ing me.^ 

Cnii.  Not  infamy,  but  forethought  for  thyself. 

El.  What!  must  I  then  follow  thine  idea  of  justice? 

Chii.  Yes ;  for  when  thou  art  in  thy  right  mind,  then  shalt 
tlioa  lead  me. 

El.  Truly  'tis  hard,  that  one  ,who  speaks  so  well  should 
err. 

CiiR.  Thou  hast  rightly  stated  the  evil  in  which  thou  art 
implicated. 

El.  But  how?  do  I  not  seem  to  thee  to  say  this  with  just- 
ice? 

Chr.  Yet  there  are  cases  where  justice  causes  injuiy. 

El.  By  these  rules  I  choose  not  to  live. 

CiiR.  Yet  if  thou  shalt  so  act,  thou  wilt  commend  me.^ 

El.  Yet  will  I  do  it  at  all  events,  no  ways  frightened  by 
thee. 

CiiR.  And  is  this  certain,  and  wilt  thou  not  re-deliberate? 

El.  No,  for  nothing  is  more  detestable  than  base  delibera- 
tion. 

CiiR.  Methinks  thou  givcst  not  a  thought  to  aught  I  say. 

El.  Long  since,  and  not  lately,  hath  this  been  resolved  on 
by  me. 

CiiR.  Then  I  will  be  gone,  for  neither  canst  thou  endure  to 
approve  of  my  words,  nor  I  of  thy  conduct. 

El.  But  go  in ;  for  think  not  I  shall  ever  follow  thee,  not 
even  if  thou  chancedst  to  be  very  desirous,  since  even  the  pur- 
suit of  shadows  is  the  part  of  great  folly. 

CiiK.  But  if  haply  thou  seemest  to  thyself  to  possess  any 

-  But  Hermann,  "  Refcruntur  hacc  ad  prfficedentia  ut  plena  oratio  sit, 
a7J}J  ovv  eTTiarcj  /  exOaipovaa,  ol  //'  uriixlag  ayeig :  at  sane  te  scias  me 
odisscpro  co  gradii  contonlus,  ad  qucm  usque  usque  mc  dcspicis.'"  Brunck's 
explanation  he  terms  all  but  unintelligible. — Tr.  Brunck  seems  right. 
I-lcctra  complains  that  her  sister,  by  not  aiding  in  her  plans  of  revenging 
her  father's  death,  exposed  her  to  the  disgrace  of  seeming  backward  in 
such  a  cause. — B. 

^  That  is,  "  Having  made  the  attempt  you  intend,  in  the  hour  of  pun- 
ishment (or  failure)  you  will  too  late  commend  my  prudence  in  declining 
to  aid  you."  That  this  meaning  must  lie  given  to  the  sentence  is  evident 
from  Electra's  answer.     !Sce  also  v.  105G. 


lO.'G— 1000.]  ELECTRA.  1 


A 


o 


?cnse,  Stiow  your  sense  thus ;  for  when  now  thou  shalt  have 
set  tliy  foot  into  troubles,  thou  Vv-ilt  approve  of  my  ^yords. 

Cii.  VV'hj,  beholding  the  birds  of  air,  most  feeling,  busied 
in  providing  support  for  both  those  from  whom  they  have 
sprung,  and  those  from  Avhom  they  have  derived  benefit,  do 
we  not  equally  practice  this?'  But  no,  by  Jove's  lightning 
and  heavenly  Themis,  long  will  they  not  be  unpunished. ^  O 
rumor  of  mankind  that  piercest  earth,  echo  for  me  downward 
a  lamentable  cry  to  the  AtridaB  beneath,  fraught  with  joyless 
disgi'acc  :  that  now  their  domestic  aftairs  are  distempered,  and 
that  as  concerns  their  children,  a  discordant  strife  no  longer 
suffers  them  to  meet  in  affectionate  intercourse  ;  but  abandon- 
ed, alone,  sad  Electra  is  agitated,  ever  sighing  for  a  father,  like 
the  all-sorrowing  nightingale,  now  utterly  careless  of  death, 
nay,  ready  to  quit  th'3  liglit,  when  she  has  destroyed  the  twin 
Fury.  ^Vho  ever  so  noble  could  have  arisen?^  No  one  of 
noble  state,  in  adversity,  is  willing  nameless  to  debase  its  high 
renown,  my  child,  my  c  hild,  even  as  thou  hast  adopted  a  vile 
life  of  utter  misery,  warring  down  the  dishonorable,  to  reap 
two  benefits  in  one  word,  the  reputation  of  being  both  wise 
and  the  best  of  children,,^     I  pray  tliou  mayest  live  in  might 

^  Alluding  to  the  filial  affection  of  the  stork,  and  that  bird  only,  as  is 
evident  from  the  Birds  of  Aristophanes : 

'X7J.  tGTLv  yulv  rolatv  opvictv  v6[iog 
Tra/MLug,  Iv  rolg  rd)V  TzeAapyuv  KvpjSeciv 
eiryv  6  Trarf/p  6  7re?.apyog  cKTreTTjCjl^uovg 
'nuvrag  ttoctJg^  tovq  TreAapyidelg  rpeipuv, 
6eI  Tovg  vEOTTOvg  tov  Tzarcpa  7tu?uv  rpsc^eLV. 

Aw.  V.  1353. 

The  rest  of  the  feathered  race  arc  represented  as  killing  their  parents, 
which  circumstance  indeed  brings  the  parricide  to  cloudcuckooburgh. 

^  '*  Quod  Monkio  placet,  hoc  dici  scilicet  at  punicntur  libcri  qui  hoc  offi.- 
ciuin  ncgUgunt,  id  quum  propter  grave m  illam  Jovis  et  Themidis  obtesta- 
tionem,  quae  frigida  foret  in  tali  sententia,  non  est  verisimile,  turn  etiam 
propter  dapov,  quod  nisi  ad  (Egisthum  et  Clytemnestrarn  spectaret,  plane 
csset  supervacaneum  " — Herm. 

^  "■  Camcrarius  sic  vertit.  In  taline  for  tuna  fior  ere  qiicat  ulla  paternce 
nGbilitatis  conscia  1  Pari  fere  scnsu  Johnsonus  :  Quis  bonis  prognatus 
s:c  vivcrc  sustincat  1  Mihi  versus  cnthusiastice  a  Choro  proferri  videtur, 
magnanimitateni  Electrs  miranti :  Qius  unquam  adeo  gcncrosa  extitit.'' — 
Musgravc.  "  Vv'hon  shall  such  hero  live  agayi  !" — Giaour. — Tr.  "De- 
voted to  her  father." — Liddell,  s.  v.  Ivrzarpig. — B. 

*  '• /i'a  lu  quot/uc  iUcctabilc  commune  fatum  pratulisti,  scelus  armans, 
ut  dapliccm  fcrrcs  laudcra,  simulqtix  ct  sapiens  ct  optima  filia  diccrere. 

Gr 


IIG  ELECTRA.  [1091—11,5. 

and  opulence  as  much  superior  to  thy  foes  as  now  thou  dwcll- 
est  beneath  their  hands ;  since  I  have  found  thee  not  indeed 
moving  in  a  prosperous  station,  but  observing  the  most  excellent 
of"  tliose  laws  which  Hourish  the  highest,  by  thy  piety  to  Jove. 

Oil:  Have  we,  ladies,  been  rightly  informed,  and  are  we 
rightly  journeying  whither  we  desire? 

Cii.  Ijut  what  dost  thou  inquire  of  us,  and  with  what  wish 
1  't  thou  here  ? 

Ok.  Lon2j  since  am  I  askins;  for  yEeisthus,  where  ho  dwells. 

Cii.  Nay,  then,  both  riglitly  art  thou  come,  and  thy  inform- 
ant is  blameless. 

On.  Who  of  you  then  would  announce  to  those  Avithin  the 
wished-for  presence  of  our  common  feet.^ 

Cii.  She  will,  if  at  least  it  behts  the  nearest  relative  to  her- 
ald this. 

Or.  Go,  lady,  within,  and  signify  that  certain  men  from 
Pliocis  are  in  quest  of  ^ligisthus. 

El.  Ah  unhappy  me !  surely  they  can  never  be  bringing 
evident  proofs  of  the  report  which  we  have  heard  ? 

Or.  I  knov/  not  the  rumor  thou  hintest  at,  but  the  aged 
Strophius  bade  me  bring  tidings  concerning  Orestes. 

El.  But  what  is  it,  stranger  ?      PIov/  fear  steals  upon  me ! 

Or.  Bnnging  them  in  a  narrow  urn,  we,  as  thou  seest,  con- 
vey the  poor  remains  of  him  dead. 

El.  Unhappy  me  !  this  then  is  that  now  certain  :  it  seems, 
I  see  my  sorrow  manifested. 

Or.  If  at  all  thou  wcepest  for  Orestes'  ill,  know  that  this 
vase  incloses  his  remains. 

Eu  O  stranger,  give  it  me  now,  if  truly  this  vessel  enshrines 
him,  to.  hold  in  my  hands,  that  I  may  v/eep  and  lament  m}'- 
self  and  my  whole  race  at  once  together  with  tliese  ashes. 

Or.  Bring  it  forward  and  give  it  her,  whoever  she  is;  for 
rtot  as  in  enmity  at  least  to  him  she  requests  this,  but  being 
either  some  friend  or  by  birth  akin. 

Armare  enim  quum  dicitur  Electra  scelus,  id  patct  idem  esse  acprovocare 
ad  dimicationem,  cujus  incertus  est  eventus,  unde  mortem  ilia  prccoptusse 
dicitur." — Herm. 

^  See  V.  1358,  upon  which  Franklin  has  the  following  note  :  "  The  ex- 
pression in  the  original  is  remarkable,  T;6iarov  txuv  TrodcJi'  v~T/piT;;ua, 
ilulcissimum  habens  pedum  ministerium  ;  not  unlike  that  of  the  prophet 
Isaiah  :  '  How  beautiful  upon  the  mountains  arc  the  feet  of  him  that 
bringeth  glad  tidings  !'  " 


112G— 1152]  ELECTRA.  I47 

El.  O  monument  of  him  amono;  mankind  dearest  to  me  1 
relic  of  the  living  Orestes,  with  hopes  how  changed  from  those 
■wlierewith  I  once  sent  thee  forth,  do  I  receive  thee  back  !  For 
rjow  I  befir  thee  in  my  hands,  a  nothing ;  but  from  tliy  Eome, 
my  boy,  I  sent  thee  blooming  forth.  How  would  I  that  had 
quitted  life,  ere  v/itli  these  hands  having  stolen,  I  dismissed 
thee  to  a  foreign  land,  and  rescued  thee  from  m.urder,  that 
thou  on  that  day  hadst  lain  a  corpse,  and  shared  a  common 
portion  of  his  tomb  y/ith  thy  father  !  But  now,  far  from  thine 
home,  and  in  a  foreign  land  an  exile,  miserable  hast  thou 
perished,  away  from  thy  sister ;  nor  Avitli  affectionate  hands 
have  I  prepared  the  bath  for  thee,'-  nor  from  the  all-consuming 
l"/yre  borne  away,  as  lilting,  the  hapless  burden.  No,  but  by 
stranger  hands  thou,  hapless,  cared  for,  art  come  a  little  freight 
in  a  little  urn.  Woe  is  me  unhappy  for  my  nurture  of  yore, 
unprofitable !  wherein  I  oft  engaged  for  thee  with  pleasing 
toil !  for  never  vrert  thou  dearer  to  thy  mother  than  to  me ; 
nor  were  they  Vvithin,  but  I,  thy  nurse,  yes,  I  as  a  sister  was 
ever  accosted  by  thee.  But  now  hath  ail  this  vanished  in  a 
single  day  with  thee,  no  more ;  yes,  all  hast  thou  with  thee 
swept,  and  like  a  humcane  art  passed  away.  My  father  is 
departed,  I  with  thee  am  dead — thyself  art  dead  and  gone ; 

^  Aulus  Gellius,  7,  5,  relates  of  Polus,  a  distinguished  Athenian  actor, 
already  mentioned  in  a  nclc  at  the  beginning  of  the  Qi^dipus  Tyrannus, 
that  not  long  before  the  acting  of  this  play  he  had  lost  a  much-loved  and 
only  son.  Having  to  perform  in  the  character  of  Electra,  he  brought  his 
son's  urn  and  ashes  from  their  sepulchre  on  the  stage,  and  thus  turned  a 
counterfeit  into  a  real  passion. — Hcrm. 

~  "  The  custom  of  washing  the  bodies  of  the  dead  is  very  ancient.  This 
ciTice  v.'as  ahvays  performed  by  the  nearest  relations  :  Socrates,  as  \vc  arc 
informed  by  Plato,  washed  himself  before  his  execution,  probably  to  pre- 
vent its  being  done  by  strangers  :  Alcestis  likewis^e,  in  Euripides,  after 
she  had  determined  to  die  for  her  husband,  washes  herself  T'ii«  Remans 
adopted  this  custom  from  the  Greeks  ;  and  wc  fmd  the  mother  of  Eurya- 
lus  niaking  the  same  complaint  as  Electra, 

" Xcc  te  tua  funcra  mater 

Produxi,  pressive  oculos,  aut  vulnera  lavi. 

Vir'g.  ^En.  IX."" — Franklin. — Te. 

Cf  Tibullus,  I.  3,  3.  "  Mc  tenet  iornotis  egrum  Pha^acia  terris.  Ah- 
Etincas  avidas  mors  modo  nigra  manus.  Abstineas,  mors  atra,  prccor ; 
'ion  hie  mihi  mater,  Qua  legat  in  mcpstos  ossa  perusta  sinus.  Ncn  sorer, 
Assyrios  cincri  qvi-s  dedat  cdcres,  Et  fleat  cii'usis  ante  sepulchra  comis."' 
8co  also  Lucan.  vii.  739. — B. 


148  ELECTRA.  [1153— 117G. 

but  our  foes  laugli ;  and  our  unmotlierccP  mother  is  frantic 
M-itli  delight ;  on  whom  tliou  oftentimes  Avouldst  send  me 
word  in  secret  that  thou  wert  on  the  point  thyself  to  come  an 
avenger.  l)ut  tliis  thine  and  my  luckless  destiny  hath  Avrcsted 
from  us,  which  hath  sent  thee  to  mc  thus,  in  place  of  a  form 
most  dear,  ashes  and  unavailing  shadow.  Ah  me,  ah  me !  O 
piteous  corpse!  alas!  alas!  O  best  beloved,  brought  on  thy 
way  most  dreadful,  ah  mc !  mc !  how  hast  thou  undone  me, 
indeed  undone  mc,  mine  own  brother  !  Wherefore  admit  tliou 
mc  into  this  thy  mansion,  mc  a  nothing,  to  a  nothing,  that 
v.'ith  thee  in  the  grave  I  may  henceforward  dwell ;  lor  as, 
when  thou  wert  on  earth,  with  thee  I  shared  an  equal  fortune, 
so  now  in  death  I  long  not  to  fail  of  [sharing]  thy  tomb  ;  for 
I  sec  not  that  the  dead  arc  pained. ^ 

Cii.  Thou  art  begotten  of  a  mortal  father,  Electra,  reflect ; 
and  mortal  is  Orestes,  wherefore  sigh  not  too  deeply,  for  to  all 
to  suiter  this  is  owing. 

Ok.  Alas !  alas !  what  shall  I  say !  whither,  at  a  loss  for 
words,  shall  I  betake  mc!^  For  control  my  tongue  can  I  no 
longer. 

El.  Ijut  what  grief  didst  thou  feel  ?  wherefore  hajipcns  it 
thou  sayest  this  ? 

^  The  general  ar.alogy  of  language,  and  the  use  of  ciniilar  vrordG  by  the 
best  authors  (as  of  "  unfathered,  unkinged,"  by  Shakespeare,  and  "  un- 
childed,"  in  a  sense  corresponding  to  that  of  the  Greek  word  here,  by 
Bishop  Hali),  will,  it  is  hoped,  excuse  this  expression,  though  the  trans- 
lator is  not  prepared  to  adduce  any  passage  in  its  support.  To  those  who 
think  this  too  great  a  liberty,  the  translation  of  Savage  in  his  first  poem, 
"  O  mother,  yet  no  mother  !"  will  be  an  acceptable  refuge  from  FrankUn's 
or  Potters. 

-  Brunck  translates  this  "  incrtnos  cnim  dohre  ccvfiiclari  non  video.'''' 
Franklin,  "  t!ie  dead  are  free  f:om  sorrows.''     Potter, 

'• The  dead  arc  free 

From  all  the  various  woes  of  mortal  life."' 
The  tvv'o  latter  did  not,  it  appears,  consider  it  as  any  thing  more  than  a 
general  sentiment.  The  translator  is  rather  inclined  to  suppose  it  a  re- 
proach, thougli  "clerkly  couched,"  to  tljc  shade  of  Agamemnon,  the 
cI)uliition  ci  despair  at  the  neglect  of  all  licr  prayers  and  the  frustration 
of  all  her  hopes. — Tr..     V.'itli  the  preceding  v.ords  couipare  Antig.  897, 

^^'1~^- 

^  "  'AfiTjX'^>'<^^'-      Malim   s'.c,  ut   f:it  part.cipium,  vulgo   dfnjxf^vuv   ab 

i!^./7^'avo^-." — Musgrave.  "Which  Brunck  conilrir.s  (.see  his  note)  on  au- 
thority. "  BcnC;  mea  sententia,  modo  ne  pravani  interpuiictioncm  adjc- 
cissct.  Nam,  ut  rcctc  monet  Monkius,  tzoi  loyuv  jungcnda  sunt,  qui 
ti::nen  addcre  debcbat  ad  oumdem  genitivum  etiam  participium  a//7i\av(Zv 
rclc':x'i:dn;:i  cs^e.  — -'Herm. 


1177—1201  J  ELECTRA.  .        U^ 

Ok.  Is  this  of  thine  the  illustrious  form  of  Electra^ 

El.  This  is  that  person,  and  in  most  woeful  plight. 

Or.  Then  \voe  is  me  for  this  sad  mischance. 

El.  Wherefore,  stranger,  can  it  be,  that  thou  thus  sighest 
over  me? 

Oil.   O  form,  in  disgraceful  and  unholy  sort  impaired ! 

El.  It  can  be  none  else  but  me,  surely,  O  stranger,  that 
thou  deplorest. 

Or.  Alas  for  thy  marriageiess  and  ill-fated  life ! 

El.  For  what  possible  reason,  stranger,  canst  thou  thus 
ffazinsr  on  me  be  mourning;'? 

Or.  Plow  truly  nothing  had  I  known  of  my  miseries ! 

El.  In  what  that  has  been  spoken  hast  thou  discerned  this? 

Or.  Beholding  thee  conspicuous  for  thy  many  griefs. 

El.  And  yet  thou  seest  at  least  but  few  of  mine  ills. 

Or.  And  how  could  there  ever  exist  more  hateful  than  these 
to  look  on  ? 

El.  For  that  I  am  an  inmate  with  the  assassins. 

Or.  With  v/hose  ?     Whence  this  evil  thou  didst  mention  1 

El.  My  father's.     Nay,  more,  to  them  perforce  I  slave. 

Or.  AVhy,  who  of  mankind  impels  thee  forward  to  this  ne- 
cessity ?^ 

El.  My  mother  she  is  called;  but  with  a  mother  hath 
nought  in  common. 

Or.  Perpetrating  what  ?  with  violence,  or  with  penury  of 
living? 

El.  Yfith  violence,  with  penury,  with  every  ill. 

Or.  And  is  there  none  at  hand  who  will  aid  thee,  and  pre- 
vent her? 

El.  None  indeed ;  for  him  I  had,  hast  thou  brought  hither 
in  ashes. 

Or.   Ah  hapless !  how  long  since  beholding  do  I  pity  thee ! 

El.  Know  that  of  mankind  thou  alone  hast  compassionated 
me  now  at  last. 

Or.  Yes,  for  I  alone  come  in  pain  for  thy  woes. 

^  Hermann  somewhat  differently  :  "  uvdynri  ryde  non  est  dativus,  idem 
significans  quod  elr  dvdyK7]v  T?'jv6e,  sed  ablativus  :  Quis  te  mortalium  hac 
scrviendi  necessitate  cogit  1  Quod  exquisitius  dictum  pro,  quis  tihi  hanc 
nccessiiatem  im.ponit  1  'Avdyic?)  TzpoTpeTreL  idem  est  quod  dvajK-d^et :  et 
quum  ravra  diccrc  deberet,  pronomen  ad  nomen  avdyuy  accommodavit, 
ut  solent." — Tk.  Hermann  is  right.  Translate  :  "  what  man  rules  thee 
under  this  slave's  lot  !" — B. 


loO  ELECTRA.  [1202—1223. 

El.  Thou  surely  nrt  not  come  from  some  quarter  akin  to 
me? 

Ok.  I  would  tell  thee,  if  the  presence  of  these  be  friendly. 

El.  It   is   friendly,   so   that  thou  wilt   speak   before   the 
trusty. 

Oil.  Give  up  this  urn  now,  that  thou  mayest  learn  the 
whole. 

El.  Nay  truly,  by  the  gods,  deal  not  thus  with  me, 
stranger. 

Or.  I5e  persuaded  as  I  say,  and  then  never  wilt  thou  err. 

El.  Not,  by  thy  beard'  I  pray  thee,  bereave  me  not  of 
wjiat  1  hold  most  dear. 

Ok.   I  can  not  consent  to  let  thee. 

El.  Ah  me  unhappy  for  thee,  Orestes,  if  I  am  to  be  de- 
prived of  thy  tomb ! 

Ok.  Speak  auspiciously,  for  not  v/ith  reason  dost  thou 
mourn. 

El.  How  mourn  I  not  with  reason  my  dead  brother? 

Or.  It  suits  thee  not  with  these  words  to  accost  him.^ 

El.  Am  I  thus  unworthy  of  the  dead  ? 

Or.  Unworthy  of  no  one.     But  this  is  not  thy  part. 

El.  At  least,  if  this  that  I  bear  is  the  body  of  Orestes. 

Or.  It  is  not  Orestes',  except  in  tale  at  least  worked  up. 

El.  liut  where  is  the  tomb  of  him  unhai:)py'? 

Or.  It  is  not ;   for  the  living  has  no  tomb. 

El.  How  hast  thou  said,  young  man? 

Or.  Nought  that  I  say  is  falsehood. 

El.  Wliat,  lives  the  man  ? 

Or.  If  at  least  I  am  alive. 

El.  How,  art  thou  he? 

Or.  Having  inspected  this  my  father's  seal,-^  ascertain  if  1 
speak  truth. 

^  "  By  thy  beard."  This  was  a  frequent  acljuration  amonjj  the  ancients, 
as  the  beard  was  an  object  of  great  care,  and  the  loss  of  it  esteemed  a 
great  disgrace,  as  in  the  case  of  David's  messengers  to  lianun.  In  tlic 
Arabian  Nights  there  is  a  proclamation  in  which  the  loss  of  the  beard  is 
a  threatened  penalty  for  failing  to  expound  certain  difficulties. 

*  Potter  translates  this,  "  Thy  state  it  suits  not  tlius  to  speak."  Brunck, 
"iYo;i  U  deed  ista  loqui."  But  the  word  Ttpoa^uve  v  seems  to  require 
that  its  preposition  be  more  fully  marked,  besides  that  it  makes  the  dis- 
covery more  gradual,  wliich  is  clearly  Orestes'  aim. 

^  "  \Vhat  this  mark  v.as,  has  greatly  puzzled  tlie  commentators.     The 


1224—1254.]  ELECTRA.  151 

El.  O  day  most  -^A-elcome  ! 

Ok.  Most  welcome,  I  join  to  witness. 

El.   O  voice,  art  thou  come? 

Of-  xno  more  inquire  elsewhere. 

El.  Hold  I  thee  in  my  hands? 

Ok.  So  mayest  thou  ever  henceforth  hold  me.^ 

El.  O  dearest  women,  O  my  countrywomen,  you  see  Orestes 
here,  in  artifice  deceased,  but  now  by  artifice  preserved. 

Cir.  We  see,  my  child,  and  at  thy  fortune  the  tear  of  glad- 
ness steals  from  mine  eyes. 

El.  O  offspring,  oftspring  of  persons  to  me  most  deai',  at 
length  art  thou  come !  thou  hast  found,  thou  hast  come,  thou 
Jiast  looked  on  those  thou  didst  desire. 

Ok.  AVe  are  here  ;  but  tarry,  keeping  silence. 

El.  But  wherefore  this? 

Or.  Better  be  silent,  lest  one  from  within  hear  us. 

El.  But  no,  by  the  ever  virgin  Diana,  this  -VNdll  I  never 
deiizn,  to  dread  the  useless  load  of  women  that  ever  abides 
within." 

Or.  Yet  see  now  at  least  how  even  in  women  warlike  dar- 
ing exists:  thou  surely  having  experienced  this,  knowest  it 
full  welh 

El.  Alas !  alas !  thou  hast  introduced  unclouded  a  calami- 
ty never  to  be  remedied,  never  to  be  forgotten,  such  as  was 
ours.^ 

Ok.  I  knov/  this  also  ;  but  Avhen  occasion  shall  prompt,  then 
must  we  call  to  mind  these  deeds. 

El.  All  times,*  all  times  were  to  me  fitting  as  they  passed 

scholiasts,  whose  conjectures  arc  generally  whimsical,  will  needs  have  it 
to  be  some  remains  of  the  ivory  shoulder  (vid.  Find.  Olymp.  I.)  of  Pelops 
which  was  visible  in  all  his  descendants,  as  those  of  Cadnms  were  mark- 
ed v/ith  a  lance,  and  the  Seleucidse  with  an  anchor.  Camerarius,  and 
after  him  Brumov.  call  it  a  ring  or  seal,  which  indeed  is  the  most  natural 

-  ^  ,  .   1      • 

interpretation  of  the  Greek  word  cOpayiq  :  though  it  may  be  said,  in  sup- 
port of  the  other  opinion,  that  the  natural  or  bodily  mark  was  more  cer- 
tain, and  therefore  a  better  proof  of  identity  in  regard  to  the  person  of 
Orestes.'' — Franklin. 

^  Hermann,  however,  for  wf  reads  ojf. — Tr.     And  so  Dind. — B. 

2  "  Sensus  est,  kanc  quidcm  non  dignam  hahcbo  guam  mctuam  Chjtcm- 
ncsim  nimiam  semper  scvcritatcm'' — Herm.      Let  the  reader  choose. 

^  t.vi(^c'/Mv  t:7ri;3a/.cr  arc  to  be  construed  together  ;  '/rjcojievov  pas- 
sively. 

*  Th'j3  i:i  PhiloctetcE,  v."hcn  Ncoptolcmur;  cays  he  will  sail  en  (ho  first 


152  ELECTRA.  [1255—1286 

to  denounce  -with  justice  this ;  for  scarcely  now  have  I  freedom 
of  speed  1. 

Ok.  1  too  agree  Avith  thee,  wherefore  keep  this  in  mind. 

El.  By  doing  what? 

Oi:.  Where  it  is  unseasonable,  wish  not  to  speak  at  length. 

El.  "Who,  then,  when  thou  hast  appeared,  would  thus 
change  their  words  for  silence,  at  least  of  any  worth?  since 
now  I  have  beheld  thee,  unpromised,  as  unhoped  for. 

Ok.  Then  didst  thou  behold  me, ^ when  the  gods  urged  me 
to  return. 1 

El.  Thou  hast  told  me  a  joy  yet  higher  than  my  former,  if 
heaven  hath  impelled  thee  to  our  abodes :  I  count  this  a  thing 
of  heaven's  sending. 

Or.  In  part,  I  am  reluctant  to  repress  thy  joy ;  in  part,  I 
fear  thy  being  too  much  overcome  by  rapture. 

El.  O  thou  that  thus  hast  dei":ned  in  len2;tli  of  time  to  show 
thyself  with  welcome  approach  to  me,  do  not,  I  pray,  having 
seen  me  thus  deep  in  misery — 

Ok.  What  must  I  not  do '? 

El.  Kob  me  not  of  my  joy  at  thy  countenance,  that  I  give 

Ho 
up." 

Ok.  Nay,  I  were  enraged  to  see  it  even  in  others.^ 

El.  Dost  thou  consent  ? 

Ok.  How  should  I  not  ? 

El.  My  friends,  I  have  heard  the  voice  I  never  could  have 
hoped  to  hear.  I  was  cherishing  a  voiceless  passion,  T\Tetched 
as  I  was,  not  even  hearing  the  news  with  a  shriek.*  But 
now  I  have  thee ;  and  thou  hast  dawned  upon  me  with  most 

favorable  breeze,  but  that  the  wind  is  then  adverse  to  them,  Philoctetes 
replies, 

ael  Ka7iug  7r?.ovg  tad'  vrav  (bevyrir  KaKtl. 

^  Hermann  supposes  some  such  verse  as  the  follov^ing  to  have  been 
lost  from  this  place  : 

avTol  yeycJrrg  rJ/cSe  r./f  66ov  fSpafSyg. 

^  Construe  JjSovuv  with  a-oarepycric.  "  Gracci,  cum  verba  duo,  diver- 
sos  casus  rcgentia,  ad  idem  iiomcn  scque  refcrantur,  ne  nomen  proprium 
aut  pronomeu  minus  suavitcr  ropetatur,  in  utrovis  rcgimine  semel  ponunt, 
altcro  omicso." — Pors.  ad  Med.  734.  Hermann  justly,  therefore,  wonders 
that  Porson  should  liavc  altered  the  accu.sative  here  into  u6ovuv.  Of 
il-oarrpdv  v.ilh  a  double  accus.  sec  Matt.  Gr.  Gr.  ^  412. 

^  That  is,  "Were  I  to  ccc  any  otlier  attempting  to  rob  thee  of  that  joy." 

*  Tl  is  beautifully  expresses  the  depth  of  ElectraV-  misery  at  the  tidings 
^rf  ];cv  brother's  death  ;  f  )r  as  Malcohu  observes  to  Macduif, 


1237—1311.]  ELECTRA.  153 

dear  aspect,  wliicli  I  never  could  have  forgotten  even  in 
misery. 

Ojr.  This  overflow  of  words  dismiss,  and  tell  me  neither  how 
wicked  is  my  mother,  nor  how  yEgistlius  drains  the  riches  of 
my  fathers  house,i  and  part  he  Avastcs,  and  part  he  idly 
squandci-s;  for  this  thy  tale  would  obstruct  the  timely  occa- 
sion ;  but  what  will  suit  me  best  at  the  present  season,  instruct, 
where  showing,  or  concealing  ourselves,  we  may  by  this  our 
journey  quell  our  insulting  foes.  But  so  [beware]  that  thy 
mother  sliall  not  find  thee  out  by  thy  cheerful  countenance,  as 
Ave  enter  the  palace,  but,  as  for  the  calamity  falsely  announced, 
lament ;  for  when  we  shall  have  succeeded,  then  will  be  our 
time  to  rejoice,  and  freely  laugh.- 

El.  But,  O  my  brother,  since  thus  it  pleases  thee,  so  shall 
my  pleasure  also  be  ;  since  the  joys  I  have  received,  I  have  so, 
deriving  them  from  thee,  and  not  mine  own.  And  not  by 
paining  thee  even  a  little  would  I  choose  myself  to  obtain  a 
great  advantage ;  for  thus  I  Avere  not  duly  obedient  to  our 
present  good  genius.  But  thou  knowest  all  from  hence  ;  how 
shouldst  thou  not?  hearing  that  ^gisthus  is  not  within,  but 
my  mother  is  at  home,  whom  nevcj*  dread  thou,  that  she  shall 
see  my  countenance  glowing  Avith  a  smile ;  for  both  mine  an- 
cient hatred  hath  sunk  deep  into  me,^  and  since  I  ha\-e  looked 
on  thee  1  shall  never  cease  shedding  tears  of  joy.     For  how 

" The  grief  that  does  not  speak, 

Whispers  the  o'erfraught  heart,  and  bids  it  break." 

Hence  Sophocles  with  the  same  idea  makes  Jocasta  in  CEdipus,  and  the 
queen  in  Antigone,  quit  the  stage  in  silence  ;  upon  which  latter  occasion 
the  Chorus  says,  on  being  asked  by  the  messenger  what  Eurydice's  sor- 
row may  mean, 

"  I  know  not,  but  a  silence  so  reserved 
Imports  some  dread  event :  such  are  my  thoughts ; 
A  clamorous  sorrow  wastes  itself  in  sound." 

Hermann  understands  the  passage  very  differently  :  "  Nequc  dubitari 
potest,  quin  uvavdov  ovSk  avv  [3od  K7.vovaa  ad  vocem  hanc  referendum 

sit,  quam  obticuisse  mortuo  Oreste  acceperat  Electra Facile  con- 

jicias  uq  taxov  opyuv,  vel  a^-  ....  Id  non  cum  opyuv  sed  cum  av6dv 
conjungi  deberet,  hac  constructione  uv  uvavdov  ovSk  civ  [Sod  KAvuvca 
taxov  avSuv."" 

^  Horner  mentions  the  seduction  of  Clytemnestra,  and  luxurious  inda 
Icncc  of  ^Egisthus.  at  large  in  his  Odyssey,  B.  III. 

-  Exactly  the  old  saw  :  "  Let  them  laugh  that  win." — B. 

^  Literaiiy,  "hath  melted  like  wax  into  me." 

G2 


154  ELECTRA.  [1312—1342. 

how  should  I  cease,  who  in  a  single  journey  have  beheld  thee 
both  dead  and  alive  ?  Yes,  thou  hast  dealt  unexpectedly  with 
me  ;  so  that  v/ere  my  father  to  come  to  me  alive,  no  longer 
should  I  account  it  a  prodigy,  but  believe  I  saw  him.  AVlien 
then  in  such  a  way  thou  comest  to  me,  lead  thou,  as  thou  art 
minded ;  since  I  alone  had  not  failed  of  two  things,  for  either 
I  had  nobly  delivered  myself,  or  nobly  perished. 

Oii.  I  recommend  thee  to  be  silent,  since  I  hear  some  one 
of  those  within  proceeding  as  on  his  way  out. 

El.  Enter  ye,  strangers,  especially  as  bringing  what  none 
might  reject  from  his  house,  nor  be  glad  to  receive  within  it.^ 

Att.  O  utterly  senseless  and  blasted  in  understanding! 
What,  have  ye  not  longer  any  care  for  your  life  ?  or  have  ye 
no  inborn  prudence  in  you,  that,  although  no  longer  on  the 
verge,  but  in  the  very  midst  of  the  greatest  dangers,  ye  know 
it  not?  But  had  not  I  chanced  long  since  to  be  watching  at 
this  portal,  your  schemes  had  been  within  the  house  before 
your  persons  ;  but  now  I  have  exerted  precaution  against  this. 
And  now  having  bid  adieu  to  protracted  converse,  and  this  in- 
satiate clamor  of  delight,  get  ye  privately  v.ithin,  since  to  de- 
lay is  in  such  cases  harm,  but  the  crisis  requires  one  to  have 
done  with  it.^ 

Or.  How  then  are  matters  from  thence  with  m.e  if  I  enter? 

Att.  Well ;  for  it  chances  that  no  one  knows  thee. 

Or.  Thou  hast  reported,  I  suppose,  that  I  am  dead  1 

Att.  Know  now,  that,  here  a  man,  thou  art  one  of  those  in 
Ilades.^ 

^  This  speech  of  Electra,  as  several  of  those  she  aflcrwartl  addresses 
to  .^gisthus,  is  craftily  ambiguous,  iu  obedience  to  Orestes'  instructions 
at  V.  1296. 

^  Brunck  translates  this,  "  tirgct  aulcm  occasio  rci  pcrcndcc  ;"  and 
Johnson,  '■'tcmpns  autcm  ipsmn  jam  instat  cxscqucndi  ;''^  but  as  the  verb 
uTza/JAacoiiai  occurs  just  above,  there  seems  no  reason  to  alter  its  sense 
immediately  afterward.  Of  course  the  expression  may  be  considered  as 
relating  ciUier  to  their  "ridding  tliemselves  of  the  business  by  executing 
it,"  or  to  their  bidding  a  temporary  adieu  to  each  ether :  on  these  the 
reader  must  decide  for  liimself — Tr.  I  think  the  phrase  I  have  adopted 
the  most  literal,  and  also  the  most  correct  to  the  sense.  The  same  thing 
is  expressed  in  v.  21  :  ug  tvravO'  tva  Ovic  tor'  tr  uKvclv  Kaipog,  (JaX'  tp- 
yuv  iiKfiij. — B. 

^  I  have  some  doubts  whether  greater  stress  should  not  be  laid  upon 
h>6uSe,   and   the  words  construed  thus  :    fiuvdav'  dg  cjv  dvi/p  ^uv   iv- 


1313—1371.]  ELECTRA.  15 


o 


Or.  Are  they  tlien  glad  at  this?  or  Vv^hat  arc  their  senti- 
ments ? 

Att.  Wlicn  all  these  things  arc  finished,  I  would  tell  thee ; 
bnt  as  things  now  go  all  is  well  with  them,  even  what  is  not 
weU.i 

El.  Who  is  this,  my  brother  ?  tell  me,  by  the  gods. 

On.  Kno\vest  thou  not  ? 

El.  At  least  I  bring  him  not  to  mind. 

OiJ.  Knowest  thou  not  into  whose  hands  thou  once  didst 
deliver  me  ? 

El.  To  whom  ?     How  sayest  thou  ? 

Ok.  By  whose  hands  I  was  privately  conveyed  to  the  Pho- 
cian's  land,  by  thy  forethought. 

El.  What  ?  is  this  he,  whom  once  alone  of  many  I  found 
faithful  at  the  time  of  my  father's  murder  ^^ 

Ok.  Tiiis  is  he ;  question  me  with  no  more  words. 

El.  O  dearest  light !  O  sole  preserver  of  Agamemnon's 
house,  how  hast  thou  come  ?  what,  art  thou  he  who  saved  him 
and  me  from  many  a  avoc  ?  O  dearest  hands !  O  thou  that 
hast  the  most  welcome  service  of  the  feet!^  How  thus  Ions; 
present  to  me  didst  thou  elude,  nor  disclose  thyself  to  me, 
but  didst  destroy  me  in  Vv^ords,  bearing  deeds  most  pleasant  to 
me  1  Hail,  my  father,  for  a  father  I  seem  to  behold  ;  O  hail ! 
But  know  that  thee  of  all  men  I  most  abhorred,  most  loved,  in 
a  single  day. 

Att.  Methinks  it  is  enough  ;  since  for  the  tale^  that  inter- 
venes, many  a  night  and  day  as  long  revolves,  which  shall 
explain  ail  tliis  clearly  to  thee,  Electra.  But  I  advise  you  at 
least  that  stand  here,  that  now  is  the  season  for  action ;  now 
Clytemnestra  is  alone  ;  nov/  tliere  is  not  a  man  within ;  but 
if  ye  shall  delay,  bethink  you  that  ye  will  have  to  battle  with 
both  these  and  other  foes,  more  crafty  and  more  numerous 
thai\  these. 

"AiSov  ivOuSe,  "  know,  that  thou  art  an  inhabitant  of  Hades,  as  far  as 
those  here  are  a  whit  the  reiser,''''  i.  c,  you're  dead,  for  all  they  know, — B. 
^  i.  e.  the  conduct  of  Clytemnestra  and  .Egisthus. 

*  "  Faithful  found, 
Among  the  faithless,  faithful  only  he." 

'  Sec  note  on  v.  1104. 

*  Cf.  "  Two  Gentlemen  of  Verona,"  Act  2,  sc.  4  : 

*'  Please  you  Ili  toil  j-ou  as  \vc  pass  alon^. 
That  vou  will  wonder  what  hath  fortuned." — B, 


15G  ELECTRA.  [1372—1399. 

Ok.  No  more  of  lengthened  discourse  to  us,  O  Fylades,  doth 
this  work  admit  of,  but  with  all  speed  to  haste  within,  having 
saluted  the  paternal  abodes  of  the  deities,  as  many  as  dwell  in 
his  vestibule.  1 

El.  0  King  Apollo,  favorably  hear  them,  and  with  them 
mc,  who  many  a  time  indeed  with  suppliant  hand,  and  such 
store  as  I  possessed,  have  stood  before  thee.  But  now,  Ly- 
ca?an  Apollo,  with  such  as  I  have,  I  beg,  I  fall  before  thee, 
1  implore  thee ;  be  thou  a  willing  abettor  to  us  in  these  de- 
signs, and  show  mankind  what  reward,  the  price  of  impictj, 
the  gods  bestow 


Cii.  Behold  where  Mars  spreads  forth,  breathing  the  blood 
of  sad  strife.  Even  now  are  entering  beneath  the  palace  roof 
the  hounds  that  follow  after  evil  villainies,  from  whom  is  no 
escape ;''  wherefore  not  much  longer  will  the  presage  of  my 
soul  continue  in  suspense.  For  the  stealthy-footed  avenger 
of  the  dead  is  brought  within  the  house,  to  the  dwelling  of 
liis  father  teeming  with  ancient  wealth,  having  upon  his  hands 
blood  newly  shed  ;^  and  the  son  of  Maia*  Mercury  conducts 
liim,  in  darkness  burying  his  guile,  to  the  very  boundary',  nor 
longer  tarries. 

El.  O  ladies,  most  beloved,  the  men  will  forthwith  accom- 
plish the  deed  ;  but  wait  it  in  silence. 

'  Thus  Philoctetes,  by  the  desire  of  Neoptolemus,  salutes  the  tutelary 
guardians  of  his  dreary  abode  when  on  the  point  of  quitting  liemnos. 

'  Ilcrmann  understands  this  of  Orestes  and  Pylades. 

^  Hermann  has  dissipated  the  clouds  of  the  grammarians  respecting 
al/Lia  in  the  sense  of  sword,  by  showing  that  the  metre  requires  veoKo- 
VTjTov,  from  Kevu.     Cf.  Eu.  El.  1172.     The  veree  is  a  double  dochmaic. 

*  "  Mercury  W'as  the  god  of  fraud  and  treachery,  and  called  6u/.ioc,  or 
the  deceiver ;  to  him  therefore  were  attributed  all  secret  schemes  and  ex- 
peditions, good  or  bad.  The  propriety  of  Meixury's  peculiar  assistance 
in  this  place  may  likewise  be  accounted  for  from  his  relation  to  Myrtilus, 
who  was  slain  by  Pclops." — Franklin.  To  which  he  might  have  added 
tlie  pcri^nnal  slight  that  Mercury  had  received  from  ^Egislbus.  Seo 
Homer,  Od.  1  : 

*'  Hermes  T  sent,  vv'hile  yet  his  soul  remain'd 
Sincere  from  royal  blood,  and  faith  profaned  ; 
To  warn  the  wretch  that  young  Orestes,  grown 
To  manly  years,  should  reassert  the  throne : 
Yet  impotent  of  mind,  and  uncontroll'd, 
He  plunged  into  the  gulf  which  heaven  foretold  " 

Pope's  Trans  /    19 


1400—1423.]  ELECTRA.  157 

/pH.'  How  then?     Wliat  do  they  now 7 

^L.  She  is  preparing  a  cauldron  for  the  burial,  but  they  are 
standing  close  by  her. 

Cii,  And  wherefore  hast  thou  hurried  out? 

l^L.  To  watch  that  iEgisthus  may  not  escape  us  on  return- 
ins:  within. 

\_Chjtemn€strafromii'ithin.']  Oh!  oh!  alas!  alas!  Oh  dwell- 
ings, destitute  of  friends,  but  full  of  the  destroyers ! 

El.   Some  one  shrieks  within.     Plear  ye  not,  my  friends  ?i 

(Cir.  I  unhappy  heard  what  was  not  fit  to  be  heard,  so  that  I 
shuddered. 

Cly.  Unhappy  me!  ^gisthus,  where  canst  thou  be? 

El.  Plark!  acrain  some  one  cries  aloud. 

Cly.  My  son,  my  son,  pity  her  that  bore  thee. 

El.  But  not  by  thee  was  he  pitied,  nor  the  father  that  be- 
gat him. 

Ch.  O  city,  O  race  ill-fated!  now  destiny  day  after  day 
wastes  thee,  wastes  thee  ! 

Cly.  Ah  me,  I  am  stricken ! 

El.  Strike,  if  thou  hast  strength,  a  double  stroke. 

Cly.  Woe  is  me  again  and  again ! 

El.  Would  it  were  likewise  woe  to  .^gisthus. 

^Cii.  The  curses  are  fulfilled  ;  they  that  lie  beneath  the  earth 
are  alive  ;  for  the  long  since  dead  are  secretly  shedding  the  co- . 
pious-streaming  blood  of  those  that  slew  them.     And  now  in- 
deed they  are  here,  and  their  gory  hand  is  dripping  with  the 
first  sacrifice  to  Mars ;  yet  can  I  not  speak  !- 

^  "Dacier  puts  theso  words  into  the  mouth  of  one  of  the  women  that 
compose  the  Chorus  ;  because  (says  he)  Electra  would  never  have  said 
'  some  oyie  cries  out,'  as  she  knew  it  must  be  Clytemnestra.  The  reader 
may  take  his  choice  in  regard  to  this  alteration.  I  have  left  it  as  it  stands 
in  the  original,  being  a  matter  of  no  great  consequence."  Thus  Frank- 
lin ;  neither  he  nor  the  French  critic  seeming  aware  that  ng  in  this  pas- 
sage no  more  implies  ignorance  of  the  person,  than  it  does  in  many  pas- 
sages of  Aristophanes  ;  for  instance,  in  the  Rana?,  vv.  552,  601,  628,  or 
than  in  St.  Luke,  c.  viii.  v.  46. 

^  Hermann  reads  iiityecv,  putting  these  lines  into  the  mouth  of  the 
Chorus,  and  the  following  half  verse,  which  he  gives  to  Electra  thus  : 
'Opeara,  Trijg  Kvpel  6e  ;  but  to  understand  these  words,  ov6'  tx(-)  ifiyeiv, 
of  the  murder  of  Clytemnestra,  would  suit  neither  the  character  of  the 
Chorus  nor  the  time.  Hermann  has  therefore  referred  them  to  'Apeog, 
after  which  he  puts  a  comma,  and  compares  II.  A.  539. — Tr.  I  have  fol- 
lowed Dindorf — B. 


158  ELECTRA.  [1424—1453 

El.  Orestes,  liow  is  it? 

Ok.  For  what  is  within  the  palace,  well,  if  well  Apollo  hath 
predicted. 

El.  Is  the  wretched  woman  dead  ? 

Ok.  No  longer  fear  that  thy  mother's  spirit  will  ever  insult 
thee.,.^^^ - — 

Cn.  Have  done,  for  I  plainly  perceive  -ZEgisthus. 

El.  Youtlis,  will  ye  not  retire  hastily  ? 

OiJ.  Perhaps  ye  discern  the  man  [coming]  toward  us?^ 

El.  He  from  the  suburb  advances  rejoicing. 

Cn.  Go  through  the  opposite  doorway  with  all  possible 
speed :-  now,  having  w^ ell-disposed  of  all  before,  so  [do]  this 
again  in  turn.^ 

On.   Courage  ;  Ave  will  effect  it. 

El.  Hasten  now,  whither  thou  purposest. 

Or.  Well,  then,  I  am  gone. 

El.  The  rest  should  be  my  care. 

Cii.  It  would  be  useful  to  whisper  a  few  words  at  least  as 
mildly  as  possible  to  this  man  in  his  ear,  that  headlong  he  may 
rush  into  the  covert  strife  of  vengeance. 

^GiSTiius.  Who  of  you  knows  where  the  Phocian 
strangers  can  be,  who,  they  say,  bring  us  news  that  Oi'cstes 
has  lost  his  life  amid  the  wrecks  of  the  chariots?  Thee,  yes, 
thee,  even  thee  I  question,  in  time  past  so  audacious,  since  I 
think  thou  hast  most  care  for  it,  and  best  knowest  so  as  to  tell 
me. 

El.  I  do  know  it ;  for  how  should  I  not  ?  for  else  had  I  been 
stranger  to  a  casualty  of  dearest  import  of  all  to  me. 

JEcr.  "Where  then  may  be  the  strangers  ?  instruct  me. 

El.  Within ;  for  a  friendly  hostess  have  they  encoun- 
tered. ^ 

JEg.  Vriiat,  and  reported  they  of  his  death  as  certain  ? 

^  Orestes,  elaopure  ttov  tov  ai-rJp' ;  and  then  Elcctra,  ^0'  vfiiv,  k  t.  2. 
So  Hermann,  who  excepts  the  verb  from  the  interrogation  thus :  "  Ye  see 
the  man  :  where  V 

^  ''  Est  dvriOvpov  locus  in  scdibus  interior  oppositus  foribus.  V.  Lucian 
Aloxandro  16;   Kermsterh.  App.  Anim.  p.  15.'' — Hermann. 

•'  07/cOe  is  to  be  understood. — Herm. 

*  There  is  an  intentional  ambifruity  in  all  Electra's  language  here  ; 
Kar/jwcav,  upon  which  depends  the  genitive,  has  a  double  meaning  of 
ihe  proposition  naTii  :  confcccrunt  \_viain  vcl  rcm'\  Kara. — Herm. 


]453— 1475.]  ELECTRA.  I59 

El.  Nay,  but  they  have  also  shown  it  to  sight,  not  in  words 
only. 

JEg.  And  is  it  for  us  to  ascertain  it  as  evident  also  ? 

El.  It  is  indeed  at  hand,  and  a  most  unenviable  specta- 
cle. 

^G.  Yerily  thou  hast  bidden  me  rejoice  much,  not  in  thy 
wonted  manner. 

El.  Joy  thou,  if  such  as  this  is  joy  to  thee. 

JEg.  I  bid  you  to  keep  silence,  and  to  throw  open  tlie 
gates  for  all  Mycenae  and  Argos  to  behold, ^  that  if  any  among 
them  was  heretofore  buoyed  up  with  em.pty  hopes  of  this 
man,  now  seeing  him  dead  he  may  receive  my  curb,  nor  to 
his  cost  beget  him  after-wisdom,  meeting  with  me  his  chas- 
tiser. 

El.  And  nov/  is  my  part  fulfilled,  for  at  length  I  have  got 
the  sense  to  suit  my  betters. 

-ZEcr.  O  Jove,  I  behold  a  sight  that  hath  not  flillen  without 
the  ill-will  of  the  gods ;  but  if  Nemesis  attend,  I  recall  my 
words.2  Remove  all  covering  from  mine  eyes,  that  my  kin- 
dred, look  you,  may  meet  with  lamentation  from  me  too. 

Or.  Do  thou  thyself  lift  it :  this  is  not  my  part,  but  thine, 
both  to  look  on  this,  and  accost  it  as  a  friend. 

^G.  Nay,  thou  advisest  well,  and  I  Avill  obey ;  but  do  thou, 
if  haply  Chtemnestra  be  Vvdthin,  call  her. 

Ok.  She  is  close  by  thee,  look  not  elsewhere. 

JEg.  Ah  me  !  what  do  I  behold  ? 

On.  "Wliom  fearest  thou  ?  whom  knowest  thou  not  ? 

^  It  was  a  common  practice  among  the  Greeks  to  set  the  corpse  out  to 
view.  See  Adam's  Roman  Antiquities  on  the  word  deposilus,  v/here  he 
observes  that  this  custom  was  probably  derived  from  that  of  exposing  sick 
persons  before  the  doors  of  their  houses,  that  the  passers-by  might  suor- 
gest  any  raadicine  they  had  known  to  be  of  service  in  such  cases,  as  men- 
tioned by  Herodotus,  b.  i.  197.  "  ^^gisthus,  imagining  that  these  Pho- 
cian  strangers  had  brought  the  dead  body  of  Orestes,  expected  to  find  it 
111  I  at  the  entrance  of  the  house,  ad  limcn,  such  being  the  general  usage 
of  antiquity." — Potter. 

-  See  note  on  v.  792.  Potter  remarks  on  the  peculiar  indecency  of 
•which  ^Eixlst'ius  was  here  guilty  (and  in  which  he  checks  himself),  he 
being  a  re  ir  relation  to  Orestes.  But  Hermann  retains  in  the  former  line 
the  old  reading  ov,  and  compares  ^■Esch.  Agam.  913,  with  this  meaninrj  : 
'^  cccidit  illc  via  ct  insidia  dcon/m,  si  fas  c>:t  hoc  diccre.  Sentit  enim  ipse 
impudentnr  se  banc  mortem  justitis  deorum  adscribere  ;  unde  addit,  si 
ho:  ncfas  est  indxtuvi  vo'.o.'^ 


IGO  ELECTllA.  [147G— 1503. 

JEg.  Into  what  men's  surrounding  trammels  can  I  wretch- 
ed have  fallen  ? 

Or.  What,  perceivest  thou  not  long  ago,  that  thou  parley- 
est  with  the  living  just  as  dead  ? 

JEg.  Ah  me !  I  comprehend  thy  Avords ;  for  it  can  not  be 
but  this  that  speaketh  to  me  must  be  Orestes. 

Ok.  Ay,  and  though  so  good  a  prophet,  wert  thou  deceived 
thus  long  !^ 

^^G.  Then  wretched  I  am  undone :  but  permit  me  to  say, 
though  but  a  little. 

El.  Let  him  speak  no  farther,  in  heaven's  name,  my  brother, 
nor  lengthen  out  his  words.  For  what  profit  should  he  among 
mortals  involved  in  evils,  that  is  about  to  die,  gain  by  time? 
No,  slay  him  with  utmost- speed;  and  having  slain,  expose  him 
to  buriers,  such  as  'tis  reason  he  should  have,  unseen  of  us.- 
Since  this  could  be  the  only  atonement  to  me  of  my  former 


wrongs. 


Oil  Thou  must  go  speedily  within ;  for  the  strife  is  not 
now  of  words,  but  for  thy  life. 

JEg.  AVhy  takest  thou  me  in-doors  ?  how,  if  this  deed  be 
honorable,  needs  it  darkness,  and  why  art  not  thou  ready  with 
thine  hand  to  slay  me  ? 

Ok.  Order  not,  but  go  thither,  where  thou  slewest  my  father, 
that  on  that  very  spot  thou  mayest  die. 

^G.  AVhat !  is  it  absolutely  doomed  that  this  roof  witness 
both  the  present  and  future  ills  of  the  Pelopidte  } 

Ok.  Thine  at  all  events.  I  am  in  this  a  capital  soothsayer 
to  thee. 

^G.  But  no  paternal  art  is  this  thou  hast  vaunted. 

Ok.  Thou  answerest  much,  while  thy  departure  is  retarded  ; 
but  begone. 

^Eg.  Lead  the  way. 

Ok.  Thou  must  go  first. 

^G.  Is  it  that  I  escape  thee  not? 

Ok.  Nay,  lest  thou  die  then  with  jileasure  :^  it  is  my  duty 

^  Orestes  means  that  .Egisthus,  who  could  now  foresee  his  fate  so 
clearly,  might  have  anticipated  it  long  ago. 

'  Potter  observes,  on  the  authority  of  Pausanias,  that  ^^gisthus  and 
Clytemnestra,  being  held  unworthy  of  a  tonil)  in  the  same  place  in  which 
Agamemnon  lay,  were  buried  just  outside  the  city  walls. 

^  Compare  this  sentiment  of  Orestes  with  that  of  Hamlet,  where  ho 


1504—1510.]  ELECTRA.  Id 

to  keefijtliis  bitter  to  tlice ;  but  good  were  it  that  this  -/engc^ 
ance  were  immediate  on  all,  at  least,  whoever  wishes  to  trans- 
gress the  laws,  to  slay  them.     For  then  were  not  villainy 

abundant.  ^^ 

z^  Cii.  O  seed  of  Atrcus,  liow  mucli  having  suffered  hast  thou 
hardly  worked  out  thy  Avay  to  freedom,^  brought  to  comple- 
tion by  the  present  attempt ! 

hesitates  to  kill  his  uncle  while  prayincr.     We  must  hope,  for  the  sake  of 
t.ie  authors,  that  they  considered  both  their  heroes  as  madmen. 
'  Or,  "  come  by  freedom." 


tl-5. 


ANTIGONE. 


Creox,  having  cast  out  Polyniccs  (who  had  fallen  in  single  combat  with 
his  brother)  without  burial,  Antigone,  his  sister,  despite  the  proclama- 
tion of  the  king,  buries  him  herself  She  is  at  length  discovered  by  the 
guards,  and,  despite  the  intercession  of  Hsemon,  is  ordered  to  be  en- 
tombed alive  :  Creon's  cruelty  is  visited  by  the  death  of  his  son  and 
Wife,  as  Tiresias  has  predicted,  and  his  rcpentamce  and  wish  to  save 
Antigone  come  too  late. — B. 


DRAMATIS  peesonj::. 


Ant;gone. 

IsMENE. 

Chorus. 
Creon. 


Messengers. 

H^EMOX. 

Tiresias. 
eurydice. 


AisrriGONE.  O  kindred  form  of  my  ow^i  sister  Ismene,^ 
knowest  thou  what^  of  the  ills  which  spring  from  Q^dipus — 
what  not — doth  Jove  yet  accomplish  to  us  in  life  ?  for  there 
is  nothing,  either  wretched  or  ruinous,^  or  base  and  degrading, 

^  The  curses  of  CEdipus  have  now  been  fulfilled  :  Polynices  and  Eteo- 
cles  have  fallen  by  each  other's  hands,  and  the  army  of  the  Argivcs  has 
been  routed  before  the  walls  of  Thebes.  Antigone  is  not  forgetful  of  the 
request  of  Polynices  at  their  last  interview,  and  determines,  in  spite  of  the 
edict  to  the  contrary,  to  bestow  the  rights  of  sepulture  on  her  unhappy 
brother.  As  the  play  mainly  turns  on  this  circumstance,  it  is  necessary  to 
bear  in  mind  how  much  importance  the  ancients  attached  to  the  burial  of 
the  dead.  The  constancy  of  Antigone's  resolution  will  thus  be  explained, 
the  violence  of  her  sisterly  affcrtion  justified,  and  even  the  merit  of  her 
generous  conduct  enhanced. — Tr.  "  Ismene,  dear  in  very  sisterhood," 
Donaldson,  who  has  a  somewhat  ingenious  note  upon  the  periphrase  lulpa 
'lcjj.rv-i]r.  He  compares  the  English  "poll"  in  "polling,"  "  catch-poli,"' 
etc.— B 

^  I  have  rendered  this  papsa<ie  literaliy,  b.ut  the  intervening  interroga- 
ti  :n  oTTolov  oi'xl  causes  much  difliculty.  If  we  read  on,  the  construction 
will  be  simpler. — B. 

^  The  reader  must  choose  between  uyrjc  urep  (the  common,  but  ap.pn- 
'•orti\-  corrupt  reading),  a,-) -rj^  uTEp—nnC7iviahle,  of  Coray,  which  Wundet 


G— 29]  ANTIGONf.  1G3 

which  I  have  not  beheld  in  your  evils  and  mine.  And  now 
again,  Avhat  is  this  prochimation  whicii  thej  say  the  ruler  has 
ju^t  propounded  to  all  the  people  of  the  city  ?  Knowest  thou? 
and  hast  thou  heard  auo;ht  ?  or  do  the  hiiuries  of  enemies  ad- 
vancing  against  friends  escape  thee? 

IsMEMi:.  To  me  indeed,  Antigone,  no  tidings  of  friends,  ei- 
ther sweet  or  sorrowful,  liave  come  from  the  time  that  wc  two 
were  bereft  of  tv/o  brothers,  dying  on  the  same  day  by  a  twin 
slaughter ;  and  since  the  army  of  the  Argives  has  disappeared 
durino-  this  ni2;ht,  I  know  nothing  farther,  whether  I  fare  bet- 
ter  or  am  more  atiiicted. 

AxT.  1  knew  it  well ;  and  therefore  have  I  brought  thee^ 
v/ithout  the  gates  of  the  courts,  that  you  might  hear  alone. 

IsM.  But  what  is  it?  for  you  appear  stirred  at  some  tid- 
ings.'- 

Ant.  For  has  not  Crcon  distinguished  one  of  our  brothers 
with  burial  rites,  but  deprived  the  other  of  this  honor?  Ete- 
ocles,  indeed,  as  they  say,'^  acting  upon  the  rights  of  justice 
and  law,  he  has  intombed  beneath  the  earth,  honorable  to  the 
gods  below  ;  but  the  corpse  of  Polj^nices,  wdiich  wretchedly 
fell,  they  say  it  has  been  proclaimed  to  the  citizens  that  no 
one  shall  inclose  in  the  tomb,  nor  wail  over,  but  leave  it  un- 
lamented  and  unburied,  ^  a  sweet  store  for  birds  greedily  eyeing 

follows  ;  (Irrjg  txov,  of  Porson  ;  or  utj]v  uyov,  of  Donaldson.  The  com- 
mon reading  is  thus  explained  by  Hermann  :  ovdev  rutv  ejidv  Kai-cdv  ova 
uXyELVuv  oTTu~a  ovt'  GrruTza  (this  being  the  leading  part  of  the  sentence) 
a,r7]g  urep,  ov6'  tariv  ottoIov  ovk  alxpov  ov6'  arijiov  oTrurra.  An  Attic  au- 
dience must  have  had  little  relish  for  plain  speaking,  who  could  bear  a 
Bcntcnce  that  might  be  negative  or  affirmative  at  pleasure  ! — B. 

^  On  E^eire/Lnrov,  see  Donaldson. — B. 

-  I  am  again  indebted  to  Donaldson,  who  has  clearly  shown  that  KaA- 
Xatvovaa  is  intransitive,  and  that  trzog  refers  to  what  Antigone  had  to 
communicate.  This  is  confirmed  by  the  preceding  words  of  Antigone,  to 
which  the  answer  now  seems  a  natural  one. — B. 

^  There  is  much  difficulty  about  this  passage.  Herm.ann  would  read 
XpycOdr  in  the  sense  "  rogatus  justa,"  alluding  to  the  request  of  Eteocles 
to  Creon.  See  Scholia.  Donaldson  reads  irpGcOeig.  The  explanations 
of  the  common  reading  are  quite  unsatisfactory. — B. 

*  This  was  the  judgment  wliich  God  denounced  against  Jehoiakim,  king 
of  Judah  :  "  They  shall  not  lament  for  him,  saying,  Ah,  my  brother  !  or, 
Ah,  sister  !  they  shall  not  lament  for  him,  saying.  Ah,  lord  !  or.  Ah,  his 
glory  !  He  shall  be  buried  with  the  burial  of  an  ass,"  etc. — Jer.  xxii.  18, 
19.  The  customs  and  manners  of  tlie  Greeks  were  originally  drawn  from 
the  Eastern  nations,  which  accounts  for  the  similitude  so  observable  in 


1G4  ^TIGONE.  130—57 

the  delight  of  the  banquet.  Sucli  thuigs  thiej  say  that  the 
good  Creon  has  proclaimed  to  you  and  me,  for  I  say  even  me, 
and  that  he  is  coming  hither  to  herald  them  clearly  forth  to 
those  -who  do  not  know  them,  and  to  bid  them  consider  tlie 
matter  not  as  a  thing  of  nought,  but  whosoever  shall  do  one 
of  those  things,  that  a  death  by  the  stoning  of  the  people  is 
decreed  him  in  the  city.  Thus  rests  this  case  to  you,  and  ycu 
will  quickly  show  whether  you  have  been  born  of  generous 
spirit,  or  degenerate  from  the  good. 

Ism.  But  what,  oh  Vv-retched  woman !  if  these  things  are  in 
this  state,  vv^hat  could  I  avail,  loosing:  or  binding- ?^ 

Ant.  Consider  if  thou  wilt  labor  along  with  me,  and  assist 
me  in  the  work. 

IsM.  In  what  sort  of  hazard  ?  Where  possibly  are  }'ou  in 
thoudit  ? 

AxT.  If  you  Avill  raise  up  along  with  this  hand  the  dead 
body. 

ls:\r.  For  do  you  design  to  bury  him,  a  thing  forbidden  by 
the  state  % 

A^-T.  Yes,  him  who  is  at  all  events  my  brother  ;  and  yours, 
though  you  wish  it  not  ;2  for  I  will  not  be  caught  betraying 
him. 

IsM.  Oh  daring  woman  !  when  Creon  has  forbidden  ? 

Ant.  But  he  has  no  business  to  put  a  barrier  betwixt  me 
and  mine.^ 

IsM.  Ah  me!  consider,  oh  sister!  how  our  father  perished 
in  odium  and  infamy,  having,  upon  his  self-detected  guilt, 
himself  torn  out  both  his  eyes  with  self-destroying  hand  ;  then 
his  mother  and  wife,  a  double  title,  mars  her  life  by  the  sus- 
pended cords ;  and  third,  the  two  wretched  brothers,  slaying 
themselves  on  the  same  day,  wrought  their  mutual  death  each 

Sophocles,  and  other  heathen  writers,  with  some  parts  of  Holy  Writ. — 
Franklin. 

^  Donaldson  rejects  Boeck's  view,  and  renders  it  generally,  "  by  doing 
or  undoing."     But  see  Wunder's  note. — B. 

^  That  is,  "  Though  you,  an  unnatural  sister,  would  disown  him  ;"  or 
it  may  be,  more  simply,  "  I  will  bury  him,  though  you  do  not  wish  it." 

^  This  dialogue  between  Antigone  and  Tsnicne  exceedingly  resembles 
that  between  the  sisters  in  the  tragedy  of  Electra,  by  the  same  author. 
The  sentiments  and  the  characters  entirely  correspond.  Antigone  and 
Electra  are  generous  and  bold ;  Ismene  and  Chrysothcmis  selfish  and 
pitifiil. 


58— S5j  ANTiGONE.  IGo 

by  ii  brother's  liaiicl.  And  noAv  avc  two,  being  left  alone,  con- 
e^ider  by  how  mueli  the  worst  of  all  we  shall  perish,  if,  in  vio- 
lation of  the  law,  we  transgress  the  decree  or  power  of  superi- 
ors. But  it  behooves  us,  indeed,  to  reflect,  in  the  first  place, 
tliat  we  are  by  nature  women,  so  as  not  able  to  contend  against 
men  ;  and  then,  since  Ave  are  ruled  by  those  most  powerful,  to 
submit  to  these  things,  and  things  still  more  painful  than  these. 
I  then,  indeed,  asking  those  below  the  earth  to  forgive  me, 
since  I  am  constrained  to  this,  will  obey  those  who  walk  in 
olHce  ;^  for  to  attempt  those  things  beyond  our  povrer  imjilies 
no  wisdom. 

AxT.  Neither  will  I  request  yon,  nor  though  you  now  wish 
to  do  it,  sliould  3'ou  act  along  Avitli  me,  at  least  Avitli  my  good- 
will. IJut  be"^  of  such  a  character  as  seems  good  to  you  ;  but 
I  v/ill  bury  him  :  it  were  glorious  to  me,  doing  this,  to  die.  I 
beloved  will  lie  with  him — with  him  I  love,  having  audacious- 
ly done  Avhat  is  holy  ;'^  since  the  time  is  longer  wdiicli  it  be- 
hooves me  to  please  those  below  than  those  here ;  for  there  I 
shall  ever  lie.  But  if  it  seems  good  to  you,  do  you  hold  in  dis- 
honor those  thinss  which  are  honored  of  the  gods. 

Ism.  I  indeed  do  not  hold  them  in  dishonor;  but  to  act 
against  the  will  of  the  citizens  I  am  by  nature  incapable. 

Ant.  You  indeed  may  make  this  pretext,  but  I  will  go  to 
raise  a  tomb  for  my  dearest  brother. 

IsAi.  Woe  is  me !  for  you  unliappy  !  how  exceedingly  I  fear 
for  you  \^ 

Ant.  P'ear  not  for  me ;  direct  aright  your  OAvn  fate. 

Ism.  But  do  not  then,  at  any  rate,  j^reviously  disclose  this 
deed  to  any  one,  but  conceal  it  in  secret,  and  in  like  manner 
Aviil  I  conceal  it. 

'  This  is  a  principle  of  ccnduct  with  a  great  many  people  besides  Is- 
menc,  though  they  may  not  always  be  quite  so  candid  as  the  young  lady 
in  confessino-  it. 

-  Brunck  has  here  made  a  mistake  in  deriving  icdi  from  larj^uc  scio,  in- 
stead ol'  elui  sum. 

^  '•  Wickedly"  w-ere  perhaps  a  better  word,  did  it  not  make  the  ex- 
pression rather  too  contradictory.  Antigone  confesses  her  violation  of 
the  law,  but  justifies  the  means  by  the  end.  This  is  what  is  iniplied  in 
uaia  7:avovpy7,aaaa,  to  which  we  have  something  similar  in  the  phrase  of 
"  a  pious  fraud." 

*  Oljioi  ra/.atvjjg  dicit  hoc  scnsu,  Hei  mihi  prcptcr  tuam  audaciam. — 
Herm. 


166  ANTIGONE.  [83—120. 

Ant.  All  mc!  speak  it  out.  YouAvillbc  mueii  more  hate- 
ful silent,  it'  you  do  not  proclaim  these  things  to  all. 

Ism.  You  have  a  v/arni  spirit  in  a  cliilling  enterprise. 

Ant.  Ikit  I  know  that  I  please  those  Avliom  it  most  befits 
me  to  please. 

Ism.  Aj,  that  is  if  jou  shall  be  able  ;  but  you  long  for  things 
impossible. 

Ant.  Therefore  wlien  I  liavc  not  power  I  shall  cease. 

Ism.  But  it  is  not  fitting  to  pursue  at  all  Avhat  is  impossi- 
ble. 

Ant.  If  you  will  speak  thus,  you  Aviil  be  hated  indeed  by 
me,  and  will  jusly  be  hated,  in  addition,  by  him  that  is  dead. 
But  suffer  me  and  my  rash  counsels  to  endure  this  danger ; 
for  I  shall  not  suffer  any  thing  so  great,  so  as  not  to  die  glo- 
riously. 

Ism.  I^.it,  if  it  thus  seem  good  to  you,  go  ;  and  know  this, 
that  you  go  indeed  unwise,  but  to  your  friends  in  truth  a 
friend. 

Chorus.  Beam  of  the  sun,i  that  liath  shone  the  fairest  light 
of  all  before  to  seven-gated  Thebes,  thou  hast  at  length  gleam- 
ed forth,  oh  eye  of  golden  day !  coming  above  the  clianncls  of 
Dirce's  streams,  having  driven  a  hasty  onward  fugitive  with 
keener-urged  rein  the  chief  of  the  silver  shield, ^  who  came 
from  Argos  with  all  his  panoply — wliom,^  shrilly  clamoring 
against  our  land,  uproused  by  a  doubtful  contest,  Polyniccs, 
like  an  eagle  hovered  over  the  earth  covered  with  the  v/ing  of 
white  snow,  with  many  a  shield,  and  with  plumed  helms.  And 
having  taken  his  stand  above  our  palaces,  ravening  all  around 
with  bloody  spears  the  outlets  of  the  seven  gates,  lie  departed 

^  Musgravc  suggests  that  the  poetry  of  this  beautiful  passage  will  be 
heigliteiicil  l)y  supposhig  the  Chorus  to  deUver  their  address  to  the  sun 
iminodiatoly  after  his  rise.  The  probability  of  it  is  confirmed  l>y  the 
splendor  and  abruptness  of  the  apostrophe,  and  stiil  more  by  the  moment 
being  marked  when  the  rays  of  the  luminary  begin  to  stream  over  the 
fountains  of  Dirce. — Tr.     But  sec  Donaldson. — B. 

^  Adrastus,  the  king  of  Argos,  and  leader  of  the  vanquished  anny  on 
this  occasion. 

^  The  explanation  of  this  passage  is  due  to  Mr.  Jelf,  in  his  Greek 
Grammar.  He  takes  ov  b^ta  K/.i^duv  together,  treating  v^ta  adverbially. 
The  advantage  of  this  is,  that  we  need  not  alter  lldlvreiuijg  to  the  geiii- 
tive,  as  Wunder  and  others  have  done.  The  only  awkwardness  is  in  the 
hyperbaton.  K?iu^eiv  is  used  in  the  same  sense  in  ^Esch.  Ag.  4S,  jueyav 
Ik  Oivjou  icXa^omr  Wprj,  Tponov  alyvTrtuv. — B. 


121—111]  ANTIGONE.  1G7 

before  that  he  hnd  gorged  his  jav.'S  v/ith  our  blood,  and  pitchy 
flame  had  seized  tlic  coror.et  of  cur  towers :  such  a  martial 
clatter  was  raised  in  his  rear  by  the  dranon  his  match,  as 
could  not  be  overcome.^  For  Jove  beyond  measure  hates  the 
vaunts  of  a  hau<zhtv  tongue  ;  and  seeinn;  them  rushin";  on  in  a 
mighty  stream,  Avith  the  clangor  of  gold,  and  in  the  pride  of 
armor,-  he  dashes  down  with  brandished  flame,  him,  who  Avas 
already  hastening  to  shout  forth  the  strain  of  victory  on  the 
summits  of  the  battlements.^  And  the  bearer  of  the  fire^  fell 
shattered  Avith  rebound  on  earth,  he  who  then  raging  with 
frantic  spirit,  bicAV  upon  us  with  the  blasts  of  most  hateful 
Avinds.  And  in  one  quarter  a  different  fortune  indeed  pre- 
Aailed,  but  mighty  Alars  leadins:  the  rinht  AA'inc;-^  and  thickeninsr 

'  C:        J  SCO  O 

the  fraA%  directed  other  evils  acrainst  others.  For  seA'en  lead- 
ers,  marshaled  against  seven  gates,  equal  against  equal  foes, 
left  to  JoAC,  the  god  of  trophies,^  their  all-brazen  arms,  except 
the  accursed  tAA'O  Avho  sprung  from  one  father  and  one  mother, 


'  Vcrte  :  talis  circa  Icrgum  (aquilc:)  intcndchatur  Martis  strcpitns,  hos- 
tili  draconi  (Thebanis)  traclafic  di^icilis,  mivAmc,  \it  Brunckius  accep:  , 
itisuvcrabilis. — Erf.  Hoc  dicit :  tantus  a  tcrgo  concitatus  est  strrpitu  : 
Martis,  insiipcrahilis  propter  advcrsarium  draconcrn. — Herm. — T.t.  I 
have  translated  according  to  Donaldson's  view  of  the  constructici:  :  ro'c^ 
77C7.  'Ap.  u.  vutra  [rod  aleovl  dvT.  dpuK.  (5v<7X-  ^~^0}].  Since  the  pursu- 
ing host  had  proved  a  match  (drriTraZof)  for  the  conquered  Argives,  so 
their  pursuit  v»'as  6vcx£ip(^l^0-,  a  thing  hard  to  be  overcome. — B. 

-  The  readings  here  arc  so  uncertain,  that  I  have  preferred  not  attempt- 
ing any  alteration.  Donaldson's  idea  of  joining  jpt'cou  with  fjevfiart,  and 
reading  icavaxy  G'  vTcepoTz/.ovg  ("'in  a  swollen  torrent  of  gold  advancing, 
and  proud  in  the  rattle  of  armor,'"  is  his  translation),  seems  more  plausible 
than  the  other  elucidations  hitherto  attempted. — B. 

^  I  should  prefer  "  at  the  very  edge  of  the  battlements,"'  i.  c,  as  scon 
as  he  had  set  his  foot  upon  them. — B. 

''  Capaneus,  who  threatened  to  give  Thebes  to  the  flames,  and  who  was 
struck  down  by  a  thunderbolt  v.hiie  he  attempted  to  scale  the  walls. 
There  are  magniiicent  descriptions  of  his  fate  in  the  Seven  Chiefs  against 
Thebes  of  ^Eschylus,  and  of  that  most  beautiful  of  plays,  the  PhcEnisss 
of  Euripides. 

^  AeELOGeipoc,  literally  the  right  trace  horse.  The  Greek  cliariots  were 
drawn  by  four  horses  abreast,  two  harnessed  to  the  pole  and  two  in  traces. 
As  the  turn  in  the  race-course  was  usually  to  the  left  (v.  11.  23.  335),  the 
strongest  horse  was  generally  placed  farthest  to  the  right.  Hermann  has 
therefore  justly  observed  :  "  Sic  appellavit  Martem  Sophocles,  ut  irapetu- 
osum,  dcxtri  cqui  more,  significaret.  Pariter  /Eschylus,  quum  fortem  ct 
vaiidum  vellot  indicarc,  cccpaonpcv  Kpiduvra  ttu/.ov  dixit  Agam.  lC-51,  2," 

*  Or,  "  Jove  that  turns  the  battle." 


1G8  ANTIGONE.  [145—189. 

having  raised  against  tlicnisclvcs  tliclr  cqiiall/  victorious 
spears,  both  shared  tlie  lot  of  a  miitiud  death.  ]^ut  since 
hiijjh-rcnowncd  A'ictory  hath  come  with  joys  to  compensate 
Thebe,  the  mistress  of  many  a  car,  now  indeed  let  us  forget 
those  wars,^  and  let  us  approach  all  the  temples  of  the  gods 
with  dances  that  last  through  the  livelong  night ;  and  let-  Bac- 
chus, shaker  of  the  Theban  land,  begin  the  revelry.  Eut 
[cease],  for  Creon,  son  of  Menoeceus,  the  new  king  of  this  land, 
comes  hither,  upon  these  new  casualties  of  heaven,  revolving 
doubtless  some  anxious  thought,  since  he  hath  announced  this 
assembled  conference  of  senators,  sending  for  them  by  common 
proclamation. 

CiiEON.  Ye  men,  the  gods  have  again  established  the  safety 
of  the  city,  after  having  shaken  it  with  many  a  Avave ;  but  I 
liave  sent  for  you  by  messengers  to  come  apart  from  all,  both 
knowing  well  that  you  ever  reverenced  the  might  of  the  throne 
of  Laius,  and  again,  when  (Edipus  directed  the  state,  and 
when  he  perished,  that  ye  remained  Avith  constant  spirits 
toward  his  sons.  Since,  therefore,  they  have  perished  on  the 
same  day  by  a  mutual  death,  striking  and  stricken  in  suicidal 
blood-guiltiness,  I  hold  all  the  poAver  and  the  throne  by  af- 
firiity  of  race  Avith  the  dead.  Eut  it  is  impossible  to  ascertain 
the  soul,  and  spirit,  and  judgment  of  every  man,  before  lie 
sliali  bo  seen  tried  by  office,'-'  and  the  administration  of  the 
laws.  For  Avhosoever,  ruling  a  AA'hole  state,  applies  not  to  the 
best  counsels,  but  from  some  fear  restrains  his  tongue,  appears 
to  me,  both  now  and  formerly,  to  be  the  basest  of  men ;  and 
Avhosoever  esteems  his  friend  more  than  his  country,  him  I 
hold  in  no  account.  For  I  —  let  Jupiter,  Avho  beholds  all 
tilings,  knoAV  it — AA'Ould  neither  be  silent,  seeing  ruin  in  jdacc 
of  safety  coming  upon  the  citizens,  nor  Avould  I  ever  make  a 
man  avIio  Avas  hostile  to  my  country  a  friend  to  myself,  knoAv- 
ing  this,  that  it  is  our  country  Avliich  preserves  us,  and  that, 

^  I  am  not  sure  but  the  construction  of  thia  prsjafrc  proposed  by  Er- 
far;]t  is  better  tlian  Brunck's  :  "  ruv  rvv  noa  vitlctur  ad  iro/Jficov  pcrtinc- 
re  :  nam  et  lan<rui(luni  foret,  nee  dicitur  luOicOcL  lr]Cfi0Gvvi]v,  sed  O^cOaL. 
Quare  jungerida  ccnseo  verba  sic  :  in  TroPu-'/zw?',  post  bcllum,  OicOe  7.7]ciio- 
avvav  Tijv  I'vr,  oblivi.seamiiii  prtcsentia,  i.e.  f.mera  fratruni."' 

^  'Apj//  (j.v(^pa  dft^ei,  from  wliich  Creon  borrowij  his  maxim,  ^va?  an 
old  proverbial  saying,  attributed  originally  to  Bias  of  Priene,  one  of  the 
seven  sages  of  Grccco. 


19;)— 215.]  ANTIGONE.  1G9 

saiiiiiii'  in  her  unfoundered,  we  make  friendsJ  By  such  laws 
ao  tlia33  I  will  exalt  this  city,  and  no\v  I  have  proclaimed  to 
th3  citizens  things  akin  to  these  concerning  the  sons  of  (iudi- 
pus.  Efceocles  indeed,  who  fell  fighting  for  this  city,  bear- 
ing the  pidin  in  every  thing  with  his  spear,  I  have  commanded 
thorn  bath  to  enshroud  in  the  tomb,  and  to  consecrate  to  him 
all  th3  honors  that  fall  to  the  lot  of  the  gallant  dead  below. 
But  him  again,  the  brother  of  this  man,  I  mean  Polynices,  who, 
on  his  return  from  exile,  wished  to  consume  utterly  with  flames 
the  country  of  his  fathers,  and  gods  of  that  country,  and  wish- 
ed to  glut  himself  v/ith  kindred  blood,  and  having  enslaved 
the  citizens,  to  lead  them  away — him  it  has  been  proclaimed 
to  this  city,  that  neither  any  one  shall  lay  with  rites  in  the 
tomb,  nor  wail  over  him,  but  leave  him  unburied,  and  behold 
his  body  devoured  and  mangled  by  birds  and  dogs.  Such  is 
my  Avill ;  and  never  from  me  at  least  shall  the  wicked  have 
honor  in  preference  to  the  just ;  but  whosoever  displays  good 
v/iil  to  this  city,  shall,  both  in  life  and  death,  be  equally  hon- 
ored by  me. 

Cii.  The  same  things  please  me  as  please  thec,^  Creon,  f^on 
of  Menccccus,  concerning  the  one  Avho  was  an  enemy,  and  the 
other,  who  Avas  a  friend  to  the  city;  but  it  resides"^  in  you  to 
use  any  law,  both  concerning  the  dead,  and  concerning  us,  as 
many  as  live.* 

Cr.   See  that  ye  be  now  guardians  of  the  edict,^ 

^  Creon,  though  an  absolute  monarch,  dreaded  the  unpopularity  of  his 
sacrilegious  edict.  He  therefore  endeavors,  by  a  great  many  plausible 
expressions  of  patriotism  and  integrity,  to  do  away  with  unfavorable  im- 
pressions in  the  minds  of  the  citizens,  and  to  extort  from  their  fear  an  ap- 
probation ol  his  conduct. 

*  2o;  non  ad  dpeoKei,  sed  ad  ru  avrd  refertur,  subaudito  alio  pronomine 
fxL     Constructio  est,  apsaicsc  fis  rd  ahrd  col. — Brunck. 

^  Dindorf  reads  Tzavri  ttov  Tcdpcarc  goc,  v.hicli  Y/under  foliov/s.  Don- 
aldson TavTaxov  Trupeari,  ooi. — B. 

*  The  Chorus  are  as  complying  and  servile  as  Creon  could  desire. 
Later  in  the  play  they  rather  change  their  tone  ;  but  it  is  a  pity  that  they, 
whose  office  it  was  to  deliver  the  lessons  of  morality  and  virtue,  should 
have  at  all  been  represented  out  of  their  natural  character.  It  has  been 
suggested  by  some  that  the  poet  meant  to  gratify  his  countrymen  by 
placing  their  enemies,  the  Thcban.s,  in  the  contemptible  light  of  slaves. 
If  this  reason  be  true,  wo  can  only  regret  tiiat  he  was  induced,  by  such 
an  unworthy  motive,  to  deform  one  of  his  finest  productions  by  a  disa- 
greeable inconsistency. 

°  ^^f  dp  for  u'^  ui'  is  the  emendation  of  Dindorf 

II 


170  ANTIGONE.  [21G— 236. 

Cii.  Impose  this  on  some  younger  one  to  bear. 

Ck.  But  there  are  "watchers  of  the  corpse,  at  least,  pre- 
pared. 

Cii.  What  farther  than  this  in  truth  Avonld  you  yet  en- 
join ?  ^ 

Cr.  Not  to  give  ^vay  to  those  that  disobey  this  mandate. 

Cii.  There  is  no  one  so  fooHsh  as  to  desire  to  die. 
'     Cr.  And  in  truth  this  at  least  is  the  reward ;  but  cain  has 
oft,  by  means  of  hope,  destroyed  men.  , 

Messenger.'-^  O  king,  I  will  not  indeed  say  that  I  come 
panting  with  speed,  having  lifted  up  a  nimble  foot,  for  I  had 
many  baitings  of  thought,  wheeling  myself  round  in  the  way 
with  the  view  of  returning,  and  my  mi?id  holding  a  dialogue 
with  me,  said  many  things.  "Wretch,  Avhy  goest  thou  Avhere 
coming  you  shall  sutler  punishment ']  Yet,  wretch,  do  you 
stop?  And  if  Creon  shall  learn  these  things  from  some  other 
man,  how  in  truth  shall  you  not  smart  for  it  ?"  l^evolving 
such  thoughts,  I  made  out  my  journey  tardy  with  delay,^  and 
thus  a  short  Avay  is  made  long.  In  the  end,  however,  the 
resolution  j)revailed  to  come  hither ;  and  to  you,  though  I  say 
nothing  agreeable,  I  will  nevertheless  speak,  for  I  come  cling- 
ing fast  to  the  expectation  that  I  shall  sutler  notliing  else  ex- 
cept what  is  fated.^ 

^  Hermann  defends  a7jM,  rendering-  it  "cur  crfjo  ctiam  alii  hoc  mar>- 
datum  cupiasl"  "  Nempc,"  respondit  ii!e,  "■  ne  quis  negligi  imperia  mca 
sinat,"  according  to  the  old  scholiast. — B. 

^  This  'KyyeAog  or  <&rAa^  (for  editors  disagree  about  his  designation) 
is  a  very  prating  and  impertinent  sort  of  person.  Few  tyrants  would  have 
contented  themselves  with  saying  u^  7A7.Tiiia  6~i7>,ov  tK7re(lwKuc  el,  but 
would  have  been  much  more  likely  to  have  chopped  off  his  head  for  his 
pains. — Tii.  I  can  not  help  thinking  that  Mitchell,  Donaldson,  and  others, 
have  much  exaggerated  the  comic  powers  of  this  messenger-guard.  Don' 
aldson's  paraphrase  (for  translation  is  out  of  the  question)  introduces  so 
many  modern  conceits,  that  Sophocles  is  utterly  forgotten. — B. 

^  JDindorf  and  others  adopt  the  reading  cr^\V{7  ~(^X^'C,  a  frigid  antithesis; 
condemned  by  AVunder. — B. 

*  Some  commentators,  especially  Mitchell,  find  something  very  witty 
in  this  "  touch  of  fatalism,  coming  from  such  a  presence."  Supposing  i* 
were  so,  there  would  be  nothing  very  remarkable  or  entertaining  in  the 
guard  talking  like  every  one  else  in  every  extant  Greek  drama  !  But  the 
fact  is,  TO  fiupaifwv  simply  means  "death,"  expressed  by  an  euphemism, 
for  that  the  witty  (si  Diis  placet  I)  guard  had  made  up  his  mind  to  the 
worst  is  evident  from  v.s.  228.  Cf  Homer  II.  xv.  613  ;  xxii.  13.  Pin- 
dar OL  II.  18.     JEsch.  Suppl.  47;  Sept.  c.  Th.  2G3.— B. 


237—263.]  ANTIGONE.  171 

Ck.  But  wliat  is  it  from  wliicli  you  feel  tliis  faint-hcarted- 
ncBsP 

INIess.  I  Avisli  first  to  tell  what  regards  myself;  for  I  neither 
did  the  deed,  nor  did  I  see  who  was  the  perpetrator,  nor  ought 
I  justly  to  fall  into  any  mischief. 

Ce.  You  feel  your  way  carefully,  at  all  events,  and  fence  it 
all  round ;  but  you  seem  about  to  signify  some  news. 

Mess.  I'or  dangers  in  cood  truth  create  much  fear. 

Ck.  AVill  you  never  speak,  then,  and  then  take  yourself 
off? 

Mess.  And  now,  indeed,  I  tell  you.  Some  one  has  gone, 
having  just  buried  the  dead  body,  and  having  sprinkled  the 
dry  dust  over  the  skin,  and  having  performed  the  pvoper 
rites. 

Cn.  What  say  you  ?  what  mortal  dared  this  ? 

Mess.  I  know  not ;  for  there  was  neither  stroke  of  axe,  nor 
aught  cast  up  by  the  spade,  but  the  earth  was  firm  and  the 
soil  unbroken,  nor  tracked  by  ruts  of  wheels,  but  the  worker 
was  one  who  left  no  trace.^  And  when  the  first  watchman  of 
the  day  discovers  it  to  us,  painful  wonder  Avas  felt  by  all.  For 
he  indeed  had  disappeared,  yet  not  inclosed  in  a  tomb,  but  a 
slight  covering  of  dust  was  over  him,  as  if  bestowed  by  some 
one  avoiding  the  pollution  ;^  and  there  appeared  no  marks  of 
a  wild  beast  or  dosf  coming  and  tearing  him.  Then  revilings 
were  uttered  against  each  other,  watchman  charging  his  fellow, 
and  it  would  have  ended  in  blows,  nor  was  there  any  one  to 
prevent  them  ;  for  each  individual  was  the  perpetrator,  and  no 
one  was  convicted,  but  put  in  the  plea  of  ignorance.^     And  we 

1  Cf.  (Ed.  Tyr.  319  :   ri  6'  tariv  ;   63^  adr/iior  elce?///.vOag.—B. 

'  The  messenger  wishes  to  clear  himself  by  insinuating  that  it  was  not 
any  mortal  power  that  had  perforiiied  these  operations.  The  Chorus, 
when  he  concludes,  expresses  the  same  opinion  ;  but  Creon  v/as  not  to  be 
60  easily  deceived. 

^  The  person  who  passed  a  dead  body  without  bestowing  a  handful  of 
dust  on  it,  was  held  by  the  ancient  superstition  to  be  {evayrjc)  polluted. 
Archytas,  in  the  well-known  ode  of  Horace,  enjoins  the  mariner  to  ob- 
serve the  pious  rite : 

Quanquam  festinas,  non  est  mora  longa,  licebit 
Injecto  ter  pulvere  curras. 

*  This  is  Donaldson's  explanation,  taking  (pevyeiv  in  its  legal  sense,  of 
being  defendant.  Dindorf  and  AVunder  read  u7.7J  t<pevye  Tzdg  rb  fx?j,  scil. 
i^Eipyaoficioc  eh'at. — B. 


172  ANTIGONE.  [264—305. 

were  ready  to  lift  masses  of  red-hot  iron  in  our  hands, ^  and  to 
pass  through  fire,  and  to  appeal  to  tiie  gods  hy  oath  that  we 
neither  did  it,  nor  were  conscious  to  any  one  who  devised  or 
executed  the  deed.  In  the  end,  when  there  was  nothing 
gained  by  our  inquiries,  some  one  speaks,  who  made  us  all 
bend  our  heads  to  earth  through  fear ;  for  we  knew  not  how 
to  object,  nor  liow  doing  it  we  should  prosper ;  and  his  words 
were,  that  the  deed  should  be  reported  to  you,  and  not  con- 
cealed. This  proposal  prevailed ;  and  the  lot  seizes  on  mc, 
unhappy,  to  gain  this  prize ;  and  I  am  present,  I  know,  un- 
v/iliing  and  unwelcome,  for  no  one  loves  the  bearer  of  evil  tid- 
ings, 

Cn.  My  mind,  O  king,  is  from  long  since  deliberating 
whether  this  deed  be  wrought  by  heaven. 

Ck.  Cease !  before  you  fill  me  with  anger,  lest  you  be 
discovered  at  the  same  time  a  fool  and  a  dotard ;  for  you 
say  what  is  intolerable,  saying  that  the  gods  have  provident 
care  concerning  this  corpse.  Whether,  highly  honoring  him 
as  a  benefactor,  have  they  buried  him  who  came  to  set  on  fire 
their  pillared  temples,  and  to  destroy  the  consecrated  gifts, 
their  land  and  laws?  or  do  you  see  the  gods  honoring  the 
wicked  ?  It  is  not  so ;  but  the  citizens  bearina;  these  thiniis 
ill,  even  formerly  murmured  against  me,  secretly  shaking  the 
head,  nor  did  they  stoop  the  mane,  as  they  ought,  beneath  the 
yoke,  so  as  to  submit  to  me.  I  well  know  that  these  men, 
corrupted  by  bribes  from  them,  have  done  this.  For  no  such 
evil  institution  as  money  has  arisen  to  men.  It  lays  Avastc 
cities  Y  it  drives  away  men  from  their  homes ;  it  seduces  and 
perverts  the  honest  inclinations  of  mortals  to  turn  to  base  ac- 
tions ;  and  it  has  taught  men  to  learn  villainies,  and  to  knovr 
the  impiety  of  every  deed.  15ut  as  many  as  for  hire  have  done 
this,  liave  in  time  wrouglit  out  their  f.ite,  so  as  to  suffer 
puni.slmicnt ;  and  if  Jove  still  has  reverence  from  me,^  knoAV 
this  Avell,  and  under  an  oath  I  say  it  to  you,  if  you  do  not, 

^  Thi.s  is  an  carl)-  allu.sion  to  the  use  of  the  orucals,  aucrward  so  prcw 
alent  in  Europe  durinjr  the  Dark  A^-cs.  There  are  many  miraculous  es- 
capes from  both  fire  and  v/aLcr  detailed  in  the  monk.i.sh  histories  of  our 
own  country. 

'  "  Ditrulit  urhiuin 

Portas  vir  Macedo,  ct  subruit  scmulos 
lieges  muneribus. — Hor.  III.  IG. 

^  The  scholiast  explains  this,  i\  rifiu  nal  ci^iu  rlv  Ala,  kci  fi)  l-iopKu 
avTov. 


30G— 335]  ANTIGONE.  I73 

discovering  liim  who  with  his  own  hand  made  the  tomb,  pro> 
duce  him  to  mj  eyes,  death  alone  shall  not  suffice  for  you,  be- 
fore that,  hung  up  alive,  ye  make  manifest  this  insult,  in  order 
that,  knowing  whence  gain  is  to  be  drawn,  you  may  for  the  fu- 
ture seize  it,  and  may  learn  that  it  is  not  fitting  to  wish  to  make 
prolit  from  every  thing ;  for  by  unjust  gains  you  will  see  more 
ruined  than  preserved. 

Mess.  Will  you  grant  me  to  say  something,  or,  turning,  shall 
I  thus  depart '? 

Cii.  Do  you  not  know  even  now  hov/  disagi'eeably  you 
speak  ? 

Mess.  Arc  you  pained  in  the  cars  or  in  the  mind  ? 

Ck.  Why  ?  do  you  explore  my  grief  where  it  lies? 

Mess.  He  who  did  it  pains  thy  mind,  and  I  thine  cars. 

Cr.  Alas  me !   how  plainly  you  arc  by  nature  a  babbler.^ 

Mess.  I,  at  all  events,  am  not  the  man  ^^'ho  did  this  deed. 

Cii.  Yes,  and  that  for  money  too  betraying  your  life. 

Mess.  Alas !  it  is  hard  that  to  whom  at  least  there  are  sus- 
picions, his  suspicions  should  be  false. 

Cii.  Talk  big  now  about  suspicion  ;  but  if  ye  do  not  show 
to  me  those  who  did  this,  ye  will  confess  that  wicked  gains 
y^'ork  ruin. 

Mess.  But  may  he  by  all  means  indeed  be  discovered ;  but 
be  he  taken  cr  not,  for  fortune  will  decide  this,  it  is  not  likely 
you  shall  sec  me  coming  hither  again.  And  now,  preserved 
beyond  my  expectation  and  opinion,  I  owe  many  thanks  to 
the  fTods." 

t_-' 

CnOKUS.  Many  are  the  mighty^  things,  and  nought  is 
more  mighty  than  man.  He  even  sails  beyond  the  sea,  when 
whitened  into  foam  with  the  wintry  south  wind's  blasts,  pass- 
ing amid'  the  billows  that  roar  around ;  and  the  supreme  of 

^  I  see  no  reason  for  changing  2.u?.i]/J.a  to  u?.7]fia.  The  former  word  is 
somewhat  hke  the  Kpovvoxv-poAr/patog  of  Aristoph.  Eq.  89. — B. 

^  Mitchell  observes,  "  The  Phylax  retires,  it  is  to  be  presumed,  amid 
much  laughter  on  the  part  of  the  audience."  If  so,  their  risible  powers 
must  have  been  below  the  standard  of  the  Nev/  Cut.  An  audience  so 
easily  excited  to  risibility  would  be  invaluable  to  many  a  modern  farce- 
writer. — B. 

^  Thus  Donaldson.     A  late  translator  has  "  awful !"' — B. 

*  This  seems  the  easiest  way  of  translating  vrru,  which  is  used  of  the 
vessel  cleaving  its  way  through  the  waves,  so  as  to  be  partly  hidden  bo  • 
neath  them. — B. 


171  ANTIGONE.  [33G— 35U. 

divinities  immortal,  undecaying  Earth,  lie  furrows,  liis  plows 
circling^  from  year  to  year,  turning  up  her  soil  with  the  off- 
spring of  the  stced.2  And  ensnaring  the  brood  of  light- 
minded  birds,^  he  bears  them  away  as  his  prey,  and  the 
tribes  of  the  monsters  of  the  wild,  and  the  marine  race  of 
the  deep  in  the  inwoven  meshes  of  his  nets,  he,  all-inventive 
man ;  and  he  masters  by  his  devices  the  tenant  of  the  fields, 
tlic  mcuntain-ransino;  beast,  and  he  will  brinfi;  nnder^  the 
neck-encircling  yoke,  the  shaggy-maned  horse,  and  the  un- 
tamable mountain  bull.  And  he  hath  taught  himself  lan- 
guage and  lofty  wisdom,^  and  the  customs  of  civic  law,  and 

^  Although  i/J.oatvuv  may  refer  to  the  i3ovaTpo(^i]6ov  movement  in 
plowing,  I  still  have  strong  suspicion  that  wo  should  read  ilporuv,  or, 
as  others  accent  it,  uporuv,  "as  seed-times  return  year  by  j'ear."'  So 
Hcsiod,  tpy.  448.  Gaisf.  y  r'  uporolo  re  cyfia  (pepei,  Kcii  x^^fiarog  uprjv 
AeiKvvEL  oHjSprjpov.  Soph.  Trach.  69,  rvv  rrape'/.dSvT'  uporov,  and  825, 
6o)6i:KaTog  dporog.  See  also  Comm.  on  Virgil,  Eel.  I.  70,  "  Post  aliquot 
...aristas."  That  the  verb  may  be  rightly,  thus  used  is  easily  seen  from 
the  interpretations  given  by  some  of  the  ancients  to  the  celebrated  pas- 
sage of  Plato's  Tima^us,  p.  530,  E.  Laem.  cf.  Ruhnk.  on  Tim.  Lex.,  p.  69 
sqq.,  and  more  particularly  Simplicius  on  Arist.  de  Ccel.  F.  125. — B.  The 
sense  will  thus  correspond  to  the  Homeric  rrepiTeX/iO/xivuv  iviavroJv,  II. 
II.  551,  VIII.  404.— B. 

^  I  can  not  rcsi-st  giving  my  readers  this  sentence  from  the  translation 
cf  Adams  :  "He  traverses  the  hoary  main  in  stormy  winds,  by  the  rat- 
tling tumors  of  swollen  sails,  and  pierces  the  supreme  incorruptible  land 
of  the  immortal  gods,  year  after  year  returning  to  plow  it  with  horse- 
kind."— P.  189. 

^  Kovipovuuv.  Libri  omnes  Kovdovtov,  mendose. — Brunck.  In  spite  of 
this  authoritative  judgment,  we  are  inclined  to  think  the  "libri  omnes" 
arc  correct.  Wakefield  approves  o1i  Kov(poveu)v  in  his  notes  to  Lucretius, 
VI.  743,  and  renders  it  "  celeriter  navigantium,"  a  meaning  much  more 
applicable  to  the  passage  and  consistent  with  the  general  spirit  of  the 
Chorus.  An  epithet  indicative  of  the  speed  of  the  birds,  heightens  the 
difficulty  which  man's  power  has  to  overcome  ;  and  we  find  in  the  other 
instances  that  the  poet  has  made  a  most  judicious  choice  of  expressions 
with  a  view  to  this  effect. — Tr.  The  gloss  of  the  schol.  Kor^o/f  koI 
rax^ug  ^cpofih'uv,  evidently  can  not  belong  but  to  /coi'^oi'twr,  which 
Wunder  has  not  perceived. — B. 

*  I  have  translated  v-a^crcu,  but  tlie  conjecture  of  Franz,  ox/iu^erni, 
is  well  supported  by  Donaldson,  though  I  do  not  sec  the  necessity  for 
reading  ^vjuv. — B. 

^  I  have  followed  Hcsychius  in  the  explanation  of  ''/vefxoev,  as  simply 
meaning  vih7//6v  /lerfcopov.  Brunck  has  it,  "  Sublimium  rcrum  scini- 
tiam,"  v;hich  he  copies  from  the  rrepl  tljv  /iFTfupcjv  (piAoaooiav  of  Ihc 
scholiast.     Erfurdt  and  Hermann  understand  it  as  expressive  of  the  spccJ 


357—394]  ANTIGONE. 


lO 


to  avoid  the  cold  and  stormy  arroAvs  of  uncomfortable  frosts. 
Finding;  a  Avav  throuoh  every  thin 2;  without  a  resource,  he 
comes  upon  nothing  in  respect  to  the  future.^  Of  the  grave 
alone  he  shall  not  introduce  escape ;  but  yet  he  hath  devised 
remedies  against  bafHing  disease.  Having  beyond  belief  a 
certain  inventive  skill  of  ra't,  he  at  one  time  advances  to  evil 
and  at  another  time  to  good.  Observing^  the  laws  of  the 
land,  and  the  plighted  justice  of  heaven,  he  is  high  in  the 
state ;  but  an  outcast  from  the  state  is  he,  •with  whomsoever 
that  Avhich  is  not  honorable  resides  by  reason  of  audacity  ;  nei- 
ther may  he  dwell  with  me,  nor  have  sentiments  like  mine,  who 
acts  thus — 

I  am  in  doubt  at  this  strange  prodig}- !  How  knowing  her 
shall  I  deny  this  to  be  the  maiden  Antigone  ?  O  "\ATetched 
w^oman,  and  sprung  from  a  wretched  father,  CEdipus,  what 
at  all  means  this?  Sure  they  do  not  lead  you,  at  least,  dis- 
obeying the  mandates  of  the  king,  and  having  seized  you  in 
the  frantic  attempt '? 

Mess.  This  is  she  that  have  wrou2;ht  the  deed.  Her  v>'c 
found  emploj'ed  in  the  burial — but  where  is  Creon  ? 

Ch.  Returning  from  his  palace ;  he  is  passing  out  to  meet 
the  opportunity. 

Cr.  What  is  it?  "VYhat  chance  thus  coinciding  has  hap- 
pened ?^ 

Mess.  O  king,  nothing  is  to  be  disavowed  by  mortals,  for 
later  opinion  gives  the  lie  to  the  judgment ;  since  I  would  con- 
fidently have  maintained,  that  I  would  have  been  slow  of  ever 
returning  hither,  on  account  of  your  threats,^  in  whose  storm 
I  was  formerly  endangered.  But,  for  the  joy  which  is  with- 
out and  beyond  the  hopes  resembles  in  magnitude  no  other 
pleasure,  I  come,  though  pledged  to  the  contrary  by  oaths, 

of  thought ;  but  Benedict  disagrees  with  them  for  the  following  reason  : 
"  Sensus  sublimes  docendo  quidcm  insUilari  possunt  humans  menti,  non 
auteni  cogitationum  celeritas,  qua3  major  sivc  minor  ex  mdole  cujusque 
naturali  dependot." 

^  This  is  Donaldson's  interpretation  :  '•  with  plans  for  all  things,  plan- 
less in  nothing,  meets  he  the  future  !" — C 

'  yepaiuv  is  the  ingenious  conjecture  of  Musgravc,  approved  by  Don- 
aldson.    Wander's  Tvepaivuv  is  absurd. — B. 

^  Donaldson,  "what  hap  holds  sortanco  with  my  coming  forth  1" — B. 

*  Tclg  ca.r  u.-rrci?.air,  propter  n^Jnas  tucs.  Vide  ad  CEd.  Col.  1£80. — 
Jklusjirave. 


17G  ANTIGOXE.  [395-432. 

l)ringing  this  virgin,  v*'lio  v/as  detected  adorning  the  tomb. 
The  lot  here  was  not  shaken,  but  this  is  my  prize, ^  none 
other  s.  And  now,  O  king,  taking  her  as  you  please,  yourself 
question  and  convict  her ;  but  I  freed  am  justly  entitled  to  get 
rid  of  these  evils. 

Cr.  In  what  way  do  you  bring  her?  v>'hencc  taking  her? 

Mess.  She  v\'as  burying  the  man :  you  know  all. 

Cu.  Do  }-ou  both  understand  and  correctly  deliver  what 
you  tell? 

Mess.  Having  at  least  seen  her  in  the  act  of  burying  the 
dead  body  which  you  interdicted.  Do  I  relate  these  things 
clearly  and  plainly  ? 

Cr.  And  how  was  she  seen  and  found  taken  in  the  act  ? 

Mess.  The  circumstances  ^^'ere  of  this  nature :  For  Avhen 
Ave  came,  threatened  with  those  dreadful  torments  by  you, 
having  swept  away  all  the  dust  which  co\ered  the  corpse,  and 
having  well  stripped  the  clammy  body,  v.-e  took  our  seat  to 
the  windward  of  the  top  of  the  hill,  having  avoided  the  stench 
from  the  body  least  it  should  reach  us,'^  each  keenly  rousing 
his  fellow  Avith  bitter  reproaches  if  any  one  should  be  sparing 
of  this  toil.  These  things  continued  for  so  Ions;  a  t'.iuQ,  until 
the  brilliant  orb  of  the  sun  took  its  place  in  the  middle  of  the 
firmament,  and  the  heat  was  burning,  and  then  suddenly  a 
storm  having  raised  a  Avhirlwind  from  the  on-ound,  a  heaven- 
sent  pest,  fdls  the  plain,  Avatering  all  the  tresses  of  the  Avood- 
lands ;  and  the  mighty  air  Avas  filled ;  and  having  closed  our 
eyes  Ave  endured  the  heaA'en-sent  plague.  And  this  haA'ing 
departed  in  length  of  time,  the  maiden  is  seen  in  view,  and 
she  is  Availing  forth  the  bitter  note  of  the  plaintive  bird,  like 
Avhen  it  beholds  the  bed  of  its  empty  nest  deprived  of  its 
young.  Thus  also  she,  Avhen  she  beholds  the  dead  body  bare, 
burst  forth  into  strains  of  grief,  and  baneful  curses  did  she 
imprecate  on  those  Avho  Avrought  the  deed,  and  straightAA-ay 
she  brings  the  dry  dust  in  her  hands,  and  from  the  Avell- 
fashioncd  brazen  in'u  high-raised  aloft  Avith  thrice-poured  li- 
bations  she    croAvns   the    dead.      And    Ave   secina;   it    rushed 


o 


^  All  lucky  and  unexpected  gain  v/as  ascribed  to  the  kindness  of  the 
god  Hermes  ;  a:id  the  word  tpfiatov  refers  to  this  attiibatc,  and  is  derived 
from  his  name. 

^  Construe! io  est:  -rze^cvydrcg  bcivjv  ('t'  avroi\  ///)  j3d2.oi,  fugicntes 
o  lorera  ejus,  r.e  lios  f^'rirrt. — Musgia  e. 


433-457.]  ANTIGONE.  177 

and  iniinedititely  seized  Iicr,  not  in  tlio  least  appalled; 
and  we  accused  her  both  of  the  former  and  t!ie  present  do- 
ings, and  denial  of  none  of  them  was  attempted.  But  this 
to  me  at  least  is  at  the  same  time  pleasing  and  painful ; 
for  to  escape  from  evils  myself  is  most  pleasing,  but  to  bring 
friends  into  misfortune  is  painful.  But  it  appertains  to  m.e 
by  nature  to  consider  all  these  things  less  important  than  my 
own  safety. 

Cr.  You,  you  bending  your  head  to  the  ground,  do  you 
confess  or  do  you  deny  having  done  tliis? 

AxT.  I  both  confess  I  did  it,  and  I  do  not  deny  that  I  did 
not. 

Cr.  You  may  take  yourself  off -where  you  please,^  free  from 
the  heavy  charge.  But  do  you  tell  me  not  at  length,  but 
brieiiv,  did  vou  know  the  proclamation  forbiddina:  this?^ 

Ant.  I  kncAV  it.     And  why  should  I  not  ?  for  it  was  plain. 

Cr.  And  have  you  dared  then  to  transgress  these  laws '? 

AxT.  For  it  was  not  Jove  Avho  heralded  these  commands,"^ 
nor  Justice,  that  dwells  with  the  eods  below  the  earth,  wdio 
established  these  laws  among  men  ;  nor  did  I  think  your  proc- 
lamations had  so  much  power  so  as  being  a  mortal  to  trans- 
gress the  unwritten  and  immovable  laws  of  the  gods.^  For 
not  now,  at  least,  or  of  yesterday,  but  eternally  they  live,  and 
no  one  knows  from  what  tmie  tliey  had  their  being.     I  was 

^  Addressinnr  the  Messenger. 

^  Addressing  Antigone. 

^  This  speech  of  Antigone  contains  a  fine  expression  of  high-toned 
feelincr  and  virtuous  resolution.  Nothing  can  surpass  the  sublimity  with 
Vv'hich  she  alludes  to  the  power  of  principle,  and  eternity  of  duration  in 
the  laws  of  heaven  ;  and  the  touching  manner  in  which  she  consoles 
herself  for  her  untimely  doom,  is  the  noblest  picture  of  devoted  heroism 
triumphing  over  nature  and  the  weakness  of  woman. — Tk.  This  passage 
has  been  frequently  quoted  and  applied  by  other  authors  :  thus  Philostra- 
tus,  de  vita  ApoUon.  N.  38,  TrpSg  yap  ru  'Nfpijvog  icripvyfiara  61  uv 
e^elpyot  (pi2.0Gootav,  tanv  i/filv  rb  rod  I:0(poK'Aiovg  lajijinov,  "  ov  yap 
71  [loi  TLeiig  i,v  6  icTjpv^ag  rcloe,"  ov6e  Movcac,  Kal  'A~u/Jmv  /.oyior. 
On  laws  as  sprung  from  the  gods,  cf  CEd.  Tyr.  867  ;  Plato  Legg.  I.  1  ; 
and  Minos,  p.  46.  Dion  Chrys.  Or.  i.  p.  56.  Cicero  Tusc.  Q.  ii.  13,  on 
the  dypadoL  vouot,  cf  Aristot.  Rhet.  I.  10  and  13. — B. 

*  This  may  either  refer,  as  I  have  taken  it,  to  Creon,  or  to  Antigone 
herself:  ''so  as  being  a  mortal  I  should  venture  to  transgress  these 
laws."  There  is  this  objection,  however,  to  the  latter  mode,  thai  lirep- 
r^iYftv  d.ie.-i  not  so  properly  mean  violare,  as  superare,  vincerc.  Vida 
Benedict.  Oba.  117. 

H  2 


178  ANTIGONE.  [458—495. 

not  going  llirongli  fear  of  llic  spirit  of  any  man  to  paj  tlic 
penalty  of  tlicir  violation  to  the  gods.  For  I  knew  I  must  die 
(and  why  not  ?),  even  though  you  had  not  proclaimed  it,  and 
if  I  die  before  my  day  I  account  it  gain  ;  for  wliosoever  lives 
like  me  in  many  sorrows,  how  does  not  he  by  death  obtain  ad- 
vantage?^ Thus  to  me,  at  least,  to  meet  with  this  fate,  the 
sorrow  is  nothino: ;  but  if  I  had  suffered  him  who  was  born  of 
my  mother  to  lie  in  death  an  unburied  corpse,  in  that  case  I 
would  have  sorrowed  :  in  this  I  sorrow  not.  But  if  I  seem  to 
you  now  to  happen  to  do  what  is  foolish,  I  merely  incur  the 
imputation  of  folly  from  a  fool. 

Cii.  The  spirit  of  the  daughter  shows  itself  stern  from  a 
stern  father,  and  she  knows  not  to  yield  to  misfortune. 

Ck.  But  know  in  truth  that  too  stern  spirits  bend  the  most ; 
and  you  will  most  frequently  see  the  hardest  steel,  forged  in 
the  lire  till  brittle,  shivered  and  broken  ;  and  I  ha.^•e  known 
high-mettled  horses  disciplined  by  a  small  bit ;  for  it  is  not 
right  for  him  to  have  proud  thoughts  whosoever  is  the  slave 
of  others.  She  indeed  then  first  learned  to  b3  guilty  of  inso- 
lence, transgressing  the  ordained  laws ;  and  this,  when  she 
had  done  it,  is  the  second  insult,  to  glory  in  such  deeds,  and 
to  laugh  having  done  them.  In  sooth,  then,  I  am  no  man,  but 
she  a  man,  if  this  victory  shall  accrue  to  her  Avithout  liurt. 
3kit  whether  she  be  sprung  from  my  sister,  or  one  more  near 
of  blood  than  all  beneath  the  protection  of  our  household  god,^ 
she  and  her  sister  shall  not  escape  the  most  wretched  fate ; 
for  I  charge  her  equally  with  having  planned  the  measures 
respecting  this  burial.  And  summon  her ;  for  just  now  I  saw 
her  within  raving,  not  possessed  of  her  senses ;  and  the  mind 
of  those  who  unjustly  devise  any  thing  in  the  dark,  is  wont 
to  be  prematurely  detected  in  its  fraud.^     I  indeed  at  least 

^  Toy  ^yv  ue  XvTrpGJg  Kpelaaov  tan  nardave'v.     Er.rip.  Troad.  v.  632. 

^  The  meaning  of  the  phrase  rov  izavru^  Zyjvu^  'EpKecov  can  only  be 
expressed,  as  the  reader  will  easily  perceive,  by  a  periphrasis.  The  a'.tar 
of  Hercccan  Jove  stood  in  the  court  of  every  house  ;  and  he  was  wor- 
shiped, as  his  name  imports,  in  the  light  of  its  guardian  and  defender. 
— Tr.  But  surely  Ztji'o^  kpudov  means  nothing  more  than  *'  our  whole 
house,"  as  "  penates"  would  be  used  in  Latin. — B. 

^  KAoirevg.  Conjungo  cum  rcpocOev  ijpT/aOai,  ut  constructio  sit:  6  oe 
Gv[iu£  Tuiv  tv  oKuTif)  /irjdiv  opOug  rexvu/itvuv,  (pi/.el  TzpoaOev  K7,o-evg 
ypJ/fjOai.  "  Mens  autem  corum,  qui  in  tencbris  pravi  aliquid  moliuntur, 
soletprius  malefica  convinci,  i.  c.,malelicii  convinci." — Musgravc.    ''Mens 


4PG— 515.]  ANTIGO.NE.  179 

hate  when  any  one,  discovered  in  guilt,  may  then  wish  to  gloss 
it  over. 

Ant.  Do  jou  wish  any  thing  more  than  taking  me  to  put 
me  to  death? 

Cn.  I  indeed  wish  nothing  more.  Having  this  I  have 
all. 

Ant.  Why  in  truth  do  you  delay  ?  since  to  me  none  of 
your  words  are  pleasing,  nor  may  they  ever  be  pleasing ;  and 
in  like  manner  also,  .to  you  mine  are  naturally  displeasing. 
And  yet  whence  could  I  have  gained  a  glory  of  higher  renown 
than  by  laying  my  own  brother  in  the  tomb  ?  It  would  be 
said  that  this  was  approved  of  by  all  these,  did  not  fear  seal 
their  tongues.  But  regal  power  is  fortunate  in  many  other 
things,  and  in  this,  that  it  is  allowed  to  say  and  to  do  v>'hat  it 
pleases. 

Cr.  You  alone  of  these  Cadmeans  view  it  in  this  light. 

AxT.  These  also  view  it  in  the  same  light,  but  for  you  they 
close  the  lips. 

Cr.  And  are  not  you  ashamed  if  you  have  sentiments  dif- 
ferent from  theirs? 

Ant.  No,  for  it  is  nothing  shameful  to  revere  those  Avho 
sprung  from  the  same  womb. 

Cr.  AVas  not  he  also  your  brother  who  fell  on  the  opposite 
side  ? 

AxT.  Pie  was  my  brother  from  one  mother  and  the  same 
father.^ 

Cr.  How  then  do  you  award  an  honor  that  is  impious  to 
him  ? 

Ant.  The  dead  below  the  earth  will  not  testify  this. 

eorum,  qui  aliquid  sceleris  clam  moliuntur,  quum  alioqui  sit  illius  occul- 
tatrix,  solet  tanien  prius  dcprehendi." — H.  Stephanus.  This  latter  ex- 
planation is  obscurura  per  obscurius  with  a  vengeance. 

1  "  He  was.  The  original  is,  '  He  was  my  brother  by  the  same  father, 
and  by  the  same  mother.'  The  Greek  writers,  though  generally  concise, 
arc  sometimes  very  prolix,  as  in  the  passage  before  us,  where  the  senti- 
ment takes  up  a  whole  line  in  the  original,  and  is  better  expressed  in 
these  two  words  of  the  translation." — Franklin.  This  notable  person, 
since  he  had  not  the  taste  to  perceive  the  elegance  of  the  original,  may 
make  himself  as  happy  as  he  pleases  with  his  two  monosyllables.  After 
having  the  presumption  to  think  himself  qualified  to  improve  upon  Sopho- 
cles, we  can  not  hs'p  sugaestinop  that  he  might  have  devised  something 
much  more  sublime  than  the  subject  of  his  self-congratulatory  comment, 
the  boasted  he  was. 


180  ANTIGONE.  [010—543. 

Ck.  lie   will,  if   you   lionor   liim   equally  with   the   impi- 
ous. 

.\>:t.  For  not  in  aught  a  slave,  but  my  brother  he  fell. 

Cr.  Laying  waste  at  least  this  land,  but  the  other  resisting 
in  its  defense. 

Ant.   Still  the  gi-avc  at  least  desires  equal  laws. 

Cr.  Hut  not  the  good  to  obtain  an  equal  ^hare  with  the 
bad. 

An't.  Who  knows  if  these  things  arc  held  holy  below  ? 

Cn.  Never  at  all  is  the  enemy,  not  even  in  death,  a  friend.^ 

AisT.  I  have  been  formed  by  nature  not  to  join  in  hatred, 
but  to  join  in  love» 

Ck.  Going  now  below,  if  you  must  love,  love  them ;  but 
while  I  live,  a  woman  shall  not  rule. 

Cii.  And  in  truth  before  the  gates  here  comes  Ismene, 
lettin"-  fall  the  tears  of  a  sister's  love,  and  the  cloud  on  her 
brow  bedewing  her  beauteous  face,  mars  the  glow  of  her 
cheek. 

Ck.  But  you,  who  in  my  house,  like  a  vijDer,  stealing  on 
without  my  notice,  sucked  my  blood,  and  I  was  not  aware  that 
I  nursed  two  fiends  and  traitors  to  subvert  my  throne,  come, 
tell  me,  do  you  too  confess  that  you  shared  in  this  burial,  or 
do  you  deny  the  knowledge  of  it  ? 

IsMEXE.  I  did  the  deed,  if  she  also  says  so,  and  I  participate 
in  and  bear  the  blame.^ 

Ant.  But  justice  will  not  permit  you  to  do  this,  since  you 
neither  were  wilHng,  nor  did  I  make  }0u  my  partner. 

Ism.  But  in  your  evils  I  am  not  ashamed  to  make  myself  a 
fellow-voyager  of  your  sufierings. 

Ant.  Whose  deed  it  is.  Hades  and  those  below  the  earth 
are  conscious ;  but  I  do  not  love  a  friend  that  loves  with 
words. 

''■  Euripides,  following  a  much  more  natural  and  amiable  sentiment 
than  this  expressed  by  Creon,  makes  Polynices  with  his  last  breath  speak 
kindly  of  his  brother  : 

^iAof  yap  Ixdpuc  iyiver',  dZA'  ouuc  (pD.oc- — PhocnisssB,  1445. 

^  Ismene,  whose  conduct  and  sentiments  we  have  always  hitherto  found 
disgusting,  continues  to  appear  here  in  a  still  more  unfavorable  light.  iSlie 
would  fain  take  the  seeming  credit  of  generosity,  and  yet  at  the  ver\'  first 
moment  she  insinuates  her  innocence,  or  at  least  extorts  from  Antigone, 
by  her  saving  clause,  an  acknowledgment  to  this  etfecf- 


544—572 .  ]  A  NTIG  ONE.  181 

Is:\r.  Do  not,  sister,  deprive  me  of  the  honor  of  dying  with 
yon,  and  of  paying  the  rites  to  the  dead. 

Ant.  Do  not  yon  die  along  Avith  me,  nor  make  yours  y\^hat 
you  did  not  touch.     I  will  sutlice  to  die. 

Isii.  And  what  life  is  dear  to  me  bereft  of  you? 

Ant.  Ask  Creon  ;  for  you  court  him. 

Ism.  Vihj  do  you  pain  me  with  this,  being  yourself  nothing 
Lenefited  by  it? 

Ant.  Yet  I  am  grieved,  in  truth,  though  I  deride  you. 

IsAi.  In  v/hat  else  could  I  now  benefit  you  ? 

Ant.  Preserve  yourself:  I  do  not  grudge  your  escape. 

Is^r.  Woe  is  me  unhappy !  And  do  I  fail  to  share  your 
fate '? 

Ant.  For  you  indeed  choose  to  live,  but  I  to  die. 

IsM.  But  not  at  least  without  my  warning  being  addressed. 

Ant.  You  seemed  wise  indeed  to  some,  but  I  to  others.^ 

Ism.  And,  in  truth,  the  guilt  is  equal  to  us. 

Ant.  Be  confident ;  you  indeed  live,  but  my  soul  has  long 
since  died,  so  as  to  aid  the  dead. 

Cr.  I  say,  as  to  these  two  virgins,  that  the  one  has  just 
appeared  mad,  and  the  other  from  the  time  she  was  first 
born. 

Ism.  For  never,  O  king,  docs  the  mind  which  may  have 
originally  sprung  remain  the  same  to  those  in  misfortune,  but 
is  changed. 

Cr.  To  you,  at  any  rate,  it  did,  wlien  }'ou  chose  to  work 
evil  with  tlic  evil. 

Is:m.  For  how  is  Hfe  to  be  endured  by  me  alone  without 
her  ? 

Cr.  But  do  not  say  her,  for  she  is  no  longer. 

IsM.  But  will  you  kill  the  bride  of  your  own  son? 

Cr.  For  the  furrows  of  other  women  may  be  plowed. 

Ism.  Not  so,  at  least,  as  troth  was  plighted  'twixt  him  and 
her. 

Cr.  I  hate  bad  Avives  for  my  sons. 

Ism.   O  dearest  Hcemon,  how  your  father  disallows  thee!^" 

^  I  prefer  taking  rolg  ficv,  role;  6t  of  persons,  not  things,  not  with  2,6'yoig 
understood. — B. 

-  This  verse  is  by  Boeck,  "Wunder,  and  others,  rightly  assigned  to  An- 
tigone. But  Schlegel,  p.  105,  and  Buhver,  Athens,  V.  4,  7,  prefer  giving 
it  to  Ismene. — B. 


182  AXTIGOXE.  [573-G12. 

Oil.  You  at  least  give  mc  too  much  trouble,  Loth  you  and 
the  marriage  you  talk  of. 

Ism.  What!  will  you  deprive  your  own  son  of  her? 

Cr.  The  grave  was  destined  to  put  a  stop  to  this  marriage. 

Is^r.   'Tis  destined,  as  it  seems,  that  she  shall  die. 

Cii.  E'en  as  thou  thinkest,  so  I.^  Make  no  more  delay,^ 
but  conduct  her,  ye  slaves,  within  ;  and  from  this  time  it  is 
fittin""  that  these  women  should  not  be  left  at  libertv,  for 
even  tlie  bold  fly,  when  they  already  see  the  close  of  life 
near. 

Cii.-^  Blessed  are  they  to  whom  there  is  a  life  that  tastes 
not  of  misfortune  ;  for  to  whomsoever  their  house  shall  have 
been  shaken  by  heaven,  nought  of  mischief  is  wanting,  lurking 
through  the  fullness  of  their  race ;  like  as  v.'hcn  beneath  the 
sea-traversing  malignant  Thracian  blasts  a  billow  runs  over 
the  marine  darkness,  it  stirs  up  from  the  deep  the  black  and 
storm-tossed  shingle,  and  the  wave-lashed  sliorcs  moan  with 
the  roar,  I  see  the  ancient  sufferings  of  the  house  of  Labdacus 
following  on  the  sufferings  of  the  dead;  nor  does  one  generation 
quit  the  race,'^  but  some  one  of  the  gods  keeps  felling  it,  nor 
has  it  a  moment's  release.  For  now  what  light  was  spread 
above  the  last  root  in  the  house  of  Gildipus,  again  the  death- 
ful  dust^  of  the  infernal  powers  sweeps  it  away,  and  phrensy 
of  words,  and  the  mad  fury  of  the  mind.  O  Jove  !  what  dar- 
ing pride  of  mortals  can  control  thy  power,  which  neither  the 
sleep  which  leads  the  universe  to  old  age^  ever  seizes,  nor  the 
unvN^earied  months  of  the  gods  ?  Through  unwasting  time, 
enthroned  in  might,  thou  dwellost  in  the  glittering  blaze  of 
heaven  !      For  tlie  future,  and  the  instant,  and  the  past,  this 

^  So  "Wundcr :  "  Ut  tibi  quideni  videtur  a  nie  decretum  esse,  ita  niihi 
videtur."— B. 

^  Tj)Lj3u(;  is  governed  by  ttoicIts  or  ayere,  or  some  such  word  under- 
stood. Musgravc  very  well  remarks  that  there  is  no  more  fitting  occa- 
sion for  an  ellipsis  than  when  the  haste  of  an  angry  man  is  to  be 
painted. 

^  This  Chorus  is  enriched  with  some  of  the  most  subhme  imatrerv  and 
conception  to  be  met  with  in  any  poet.  The  lines,  in  particular,  which 
celebrate  the  power  of  Jupiter  are  grand  beyond  expression. 

*  "  Atone  for,  or  pay  the  reckoning  of  the  race.'' 

°  Sec  Donaldson. — B. 

'  In  Liddeli's  Le?c;cjn,  the  conjecture  of  Reimer,  Travrdyrjpug,  "never 
growing  old,"'  is  approved.  It  certainly  seems  sunpler  than  the  TrayKpa- 
r?;f  of  Donaldson. — B. 


013—055.]  ANTIGONE.  183 

law  will  suffice :  nothing  comes  to  the  life  of  mortals  far  re- 
moved at  least  from  calamity.^  For  much-deceitful  hope  is 
a  gratification  to  many,  and  to  many  the  beguilements  of 
light-minded  love ;  but  ruin  advances  on  man,  all-ignorant, 
before  that  he  touch  his  foot  with  the  Avarm  lii'e.  In  wisdom 
hath  an  illustrious  saying  been  by  some  one  set  forth :  That 
evil  on  a  time  appears  good  to  him  whose  mind  the  god  hur- 
ries on  to  judgment,  and  that  he  lives  for  a  brief  space  apart 
from  its  visitation. 

But  here  is  Harmon,  the  youngest  by  birth  of  your  children. 
Does  he  come,  lamenting  the  fate  of  his  betrothed  bride  An- 
tigone, grieving  at  being  defrauded  of  the  nuptials  ? 

Cr.  We  shall  soon  know  better  than  prophets.  O  my  son  ! 
having  then  heard  the  ratified  decree  against  your  bride,  do 
you  come,  raging  against  your  father?  or  are  we,  in  whatever 
way  acting,  dear  to  you '? 

H.E?.iON.  Father,  I  am  thine ;  and  you,  having  good  coun- 
sels for  me,  which  I  will  follow,  direct  me  aright.  For  no 
marriage  will  justly  be  considered  greater  with  me  than  you, 
while  cuidins;  me  well. 

Cr.  For  thus,  O  my  son,  it  is  fitting  to  feel  in  your  breast 
that  every  thing  takes  its  place  behind  the  judgment  of  a 
father ;  for  on  account  of  this  men  pray  that  begetting 
children,  they  may  have  them  obedient  in  their  house,  in 
order  that  they  may  both  repay  an  enemy  with  evil,^  and 
honor  a  friend  equally  with  their  father.  But  whosoever 
begets  useless  children,  what  would  you  say  that  he  did  else 
than  engender  toils  to  himself,  and  much  laughter  to  his  en- 
emies ?  Do  not  you  now,  my  son,  for  the  sake  of  a  woman, 
ever  drive  away  your  senses  by  pleasure,  knowing  that  this 
is  a  chiUing  embrace,  a  bad  wife,  the  partner  of  your  bed  at 
home.  For  what  Avorse  ulcer  could  there  be  than  a  false 
friend  ?  But,  spurning  her  as  an  enemy,  suffer  this  virgin 
to  marry  some  one  in  the  shades.     For  since  I  have  clearly 

'  This  is  very  corrupt.  Donaldson  \vould  read,  vo/uoq  6d'  dvSpoQ 
alaav.  "  Qvaruv  [Siorcp  TTufirro/ug  drjLv  ura  ;  "  In  all  the  life  of  mortals 
mischief  in  every  state  her  franchise  clahns." — C 

^  There  is  a  strontr  resemblance  in  this  to  the  sentiments,  not  to  say 
the  language  of  the  Psalmist :  "  Like  as  arrows  in  the  hand  of  the  giant, 
even  so  are  young  children  :  happy  is  the  man  that  hath  his  quiver  full 
of  them  ;  they  shall  not  he  ashamed  when  they  speak  with  their  enemies 
in  ths  gate." — Ps.  cxxvii.  5,  0. 


18-1:  ANTIGONE.  "  [GoG— GOO. 

discovered  her  alone  of  all  the  city  acting  Avitli  disobedience, 
I  will  not  prove  myself  false  to  my  country,  but  will  put 
her  to  death.  Let  her,  therefore,  invoke  Jove,  the  god  of 
kindred ;  for  if  I  rear  those  who  are  my  natural  kin  dis- 
orderly, much  more  shall  I  tlius  rear  those  wdio  are  not  con- 
nected with  me :  for  whosoever  is  a  good  man  in  his  own 
family,  will  also  be  shown  to  be  just  in  the  state ;  but  who- 
soever acts  with  violence  in  transgressing  the  laws,  or  thinks 
to  command  those  in  power,  it  is  impossible  that  he  should 
meet  with  praise  from  me.  But  whom  the  city  may  appoint, 
him  it  is  proper  to  obey  in  small  things  or  in  great,  just  or 
unjust  ;i  and  this  man  I  am  confident  would  rule  well,  and 
would  be  willing  to  be  wxU  ruled,  and  in  the  tem.pest  of  the 
spear  would  remain  at  his  post  a  just  and  brave  companion  in 
arms.  There  is  no  greater  bane  than  anarchy:  it  destroys 
cities,  lays  houses  low,  and  in  the  combat  with  the  spear  scat- 
ters to  the  rout  ;^  but  discipline  preserves  the  most  of  those  v/lio 
are  under  rule.  There  must  thus  be  aid  given  to  those  that 
govern,  and  we  must  by  no  means  yield  to  a  woman ;  for  it 
were  better,  if  necessary,  to  be  vanquished  by  a  man,  and  we 
would  not  be  called  inferior  to  women. 

Cii.  To  us  indeed,  if  we  are  not  misled  l)y  old  age,  you  seem 
to  speak  wisely  concerning  what  you  speak. 

ILe.  Father,  the  gods  implant  wisdom  in  man,  the  highest 
of  all  possessions  as  many  as  exist.  But  I  should  neither  be 
able  nor  know  to  express  that  you  do  not  say  these  things 
aright.  For  another  indeed  it  might  be  proper.^  For  your 
interest,  then,  I  have  been  accustomed  to  consider  every 
thing  that  any  one  says  or  does,  or  has  to  blame ;  for  your 
eye  terrifies  a  common  citizen  from  using  those  word^  which 


^  On  this  modest  idea  of  sovereignty  cf.  -Esch.  Chocph.  78,  dinata 
Kul  fifj  diKaia,  jifj  TrpiTTOvr'  I'lpxal^  (Stov,  ftia  ^epoiitvuv  alveaai,  TTiKpuv 
^pevcjv  GTvyog  Kparovay. — Seneca  .Med.  195.  "  ^Equum  atque  iniquara 
regis  impcrium  feras." — Piaut.  Amphit.  I.  1,  19. — 13. 

-  narap^.  rpoTruc;,  i.  c,  uar.  ojote  rponilg  eliai.      Sec  Wunder. — B. 

^  Such  is  the  interpretation  of  Heath  :  '•  Fieri  quidcm  id  possit  ab  alio 
(qui  filius  non  sit  tuus)  et  quidem  non  indecore."  Hfenion  delicately  in- 
sinuates that  the  conduct  of  his  fatljcr  is  o!)jcctionable,  but  will  not  al- 
low himself,  from  filial  respect,  to  give  vc::t  to  unbecoming  censure. 
Brunck's  translation  bears  about  as  much  relation  to  the  orijiinal  as  it 
docs  to  sense  and  intelligibility  :  "  Est  tan.ra  ut  alius  etiam  vera  diccre 
qucat." 


091—727]  ANTIGONE.  IS^i 

you  Avould  not  be  pleased  to  hear ;  but  I,  in  the  sliade,  can 
hear  them,  in  wliat  way  the  city  mourns  for  this  virgin ;  hov/ 
she,  the  most  undeservedly  of  all  women,  perishes  by  the  most 
wretched  death,  after  most  glorious  deeds ;  she  who  did  not 
suffer  her  own  brother,  having  fallen  in  the  slaughter  unburied, 
to  be  destroyed  by  ravening  dogs,  nor  by  any  bird.  Is  not 
she  worthy  of  gaining  golden  honor?  Such  a  hidden  report 
makes  its  way  on  in  silence.  To  me,  father,  there  is  no  pos- 
session more  honorable  than  }-our  prosperity ;  for  what  is  a 
greater  ornament  of  glory  to  children  than  a  father  flourish- 
iiig  ?  or  what  to  a  father  than  his  children?  Do  not  now 
bear  this  one  disposition  of  mind  only  in  yourself,  that  what 
you  say,  and  nothing  else,  is  right ;  for  whosoever  thinks  that 
ho  liimself  alone  has  wisdom,  or  a  tongue,  or  a  soul,  such  as 
no  other,  these  men,  when  laid  open,  have  been  seen  to  be 
empty.  But  it  is  no  disgrace  to  a  man,  even  though  he  be 
wise,  to  learn  many  things,  and  not  to  strive  too  much  against 
others.  You  see  by  the  channels  of  -s^'inter  streams  how  as 
many  trees  as  yield  preserve  their  boughs,  but  those  that  re- 
sist perish  with  the  very  root.  And  in  like  manner,  whoever 
managing  a  ship,  having  dravv^n  firm  the  sail-rope,  gives  no 
Avay ;  he  upsetting  her,  navigates  for  the  future  with  benches 
turned  upside  down.  But  yield  from  your  anger,i  and  grant 
a  change.  For  if  there  is  any  judgment  with  me  too,  though 
a  younger  man,  I  say  that  it  is  far  the  best  for  a  man  to  be 
by  nature  full  of  knowledge ;  but  if  not,  for  it  is  not  wont  to 
incline  in  this  way,  it  is  also  honorable  to  learn  from  those  that 
advise  well.-^ 

Cii.  O  king !  it  is  meet,  if  he  speak  to  the  purpose,  that  you 
should  learn  from  him ;  and  you,  H^emon,  again  from  your 
father ;  for  it  has  been  well  spoken  on  both  sides. 

Cr.  Shall  Ave,  of  such  an  age,  be  taught  wisdom  by  one  of 
his  time  of  life  ? 

^  Dindorf  strangely  retains  dvfiC). — B. 

^  There  is  a  passage  very  similar  to  this  in  Hesiod,  which  the  readers 
of  Aristotle  will  remember  quoted  in  the  first  book  of  the  Ethics  : 
Kelvoc  /-lev  rravcipiarog,  og  avrbg  Tzuvra  voi^G€L 
^paaau/uevoc  rd  k'  trretra  Kal  Ig  T£/.og  yaiv  o/neivw 
'Ec^Aof  6'  av  KciKetvog,  bg  ev  eItzovtl  TrWrjrac. 
"Og  de  Ke  jutJt'  avrbg  voCri,  fii'iT]'  u/Jmv  ukovlov 
'Ev  6v[iC)  i3d/.7.rjTai,  66'  avr'  uxpv'iog  uvrjp. 

Hesiod.  'Epy.  290. 


18G  ANTIGONE.  [728—751. 

HyE.  Nothing  which  is  not  just;  but  if  I  am  a  young  man, 
it  is  not  fitting  to  retard  years  more  than  works. 

Ck.  For  it  is  a  good  work  to  pay  regard  to  those  who  are 
guihy  of  disobedience  % 

H.*:.  No,  nor  would  I  desire  you  to  observe  reverence  to- 
ward the  bad. 

Ck,  For  has  not  she  been  seized  with  such  a  disease  ? 

HuE.  The  people  that  dwell  together  in  tliis  city  of  Thebe 
deny  it. 

Cii.  Shall  the  city  dictate  to  me  what  it  is  proper  for  me  to 
ordain  ? 

H.E.  Do  you  see  how  you  have  spoken  this  like  a  very 
young  man  ? 

Ck.  For  does  it  become  any  other  one  than  me  to  rule  this 
land  ? 

PLe.  Nay,  that  is  not  the  state  which  is  dependent  on  one 
man. 

Ck.  Is  not  the  state  deemed  the  possession  of  its  ruler? 

H^.  No  doubt :  in  an  uninhabited  land  at  least  you  might 
rule  alone. 

Ck.  He,  as  it  appears,  fights  in  alliance  with  a  woman. 

H.E.  If  you  are  a  woman  ;  for  my  care  is  for  you. 

Ck.  Oh,  utterly  basest  of  Avretches !  quarreling  with  your 
father ! 

HvE.  For  I  see  you  committing  the  sin  of  injustice. 

Civ.  Do  I  sin  in  paying  reverence  to  my  own  dominion  ? 

IlyE.  You  do  not  pay  reverence  when  trampling  under  foot 
at  least  the  honors  of  the  gods. 

Ck.   Oh,  accursed  disposition,  and  enslaved  to  a  vroman ! 

H^.  You  will  not,  at  all  events,  ever  find  me  the  slave  of 
what  is  base. 

Ck.  All  vour  s]:)cech  at  least  is  for  her. 

*/  J. 

H^.  And  for  you  too,  and  for  me,  and  for  the  gods  below 
the  earth. 

Ck.  It  may  not  be  that  you  should  ever  now  marry  her  in 
life. 

ILe.   She  then  will  die,  and,  dying,  will  destroy  some  one.^ 

^  Crcon  evidently  suv)pose.s  that  Hacmon  threatens  his  life,  mistaking 
■what  is  an  ambiguous  intimation  of  his  purpose  of  destroying  himself — 
T.'i.  The  Covent  Garden  adapter  well  rendered  it,  "She'll  die  —  per* 
chance  not  only  she.'' — 13. 


752— 775J  ANTIGONE.  187 

Cr.  Do  jou  also,  threatening,  thus  advance  in  audacity  1 

HjE.  And  what  threat  is  it  to  argue  against  foolish  opin- 
ions? 

Cr.  To  your  cost  you  shall  school  me,  being  yourself  void 
of  understanding. 

ILi::.  If  you  were  not  my  father,  I  would  have  said  that  you 
were  simple. 

Cr.  Being  the  slave  of  a  woman,  do  not  revile  me.^ 

HyE.  Do  you  wish  to  speak,  and  speaking,  to  liear  nothing 
in  return  ? 

Cr.  Can  this  be  true?  but  know,  by  Olympus,  that  you 
shall  not  with  impunity  insult  me  with  your  upbraidings. 
Bring  the  hateful  thing,  that  she  may  immediately  die  in  the 
presence  of  her  bridegroom,  near  him,  and  in  his  sight. 

ILe.  Kever,  near  me  at  least,  think  it  not,  shall  she  perish  ; 
and  you  shall  no  longer,  beholding  it  with  }'our  eyes,  see  my 
face,  wherefore  thou  mayest  be  mad  in  company  with  such 
friends  as  are  Vv'iliing  [to  abide  it]. 

Cii.  The  man,  O  king !  has  departed  abruptly  in  anger ; 
and  the  mind,  when  pained  at  his  years,  is  dreadful. 

Cr.  Let  him  do  what  he  pleases ;  let  him,  going,  feel  proud- 
er thoughts  than  become  a  mortal ;  but  he  shall  not  release 
these  virgins  from  their  fate. 

Cii.  For  do  you  intend  to  kill  both  of  them  ? 

Cr.  Not  her  at  least  who  did  not  touch  the  body,  for  you 
certainly  sunQest  this  well. 

Cii.  And  by  what  sort  of  death  do  you  meditate  to  destroy 
her  ? 

Cr.  Conducting  her  where  the  way  is  untrodden  by  mor- 
tals, I  will  bury  her  alive  in  the  cavern  of  the  rock,^  only  set- 
ting forth  so  much  food  as  will  suffice  for  expiation,^  in  order 

^  lvG)r[/.?.o  generally  means  adidor,  but  here  it  is  necessarily  taken  in 
an  opposite  sense.  This  mode  of  using  the  same  word  in  a  directly  con- 
trary signification  is  not  uncommon.  "OveiSog  is  a  marked  instance  of  it  : 
OjjjSai^  Ku?i?uaTov  6v£i6og.     Eur.  Phcen.  821. 

2  "  In  arcam  inclusos  tradunt  non  dissimili  gcnerc  pa?ns  Danaen  : 
Cycni  liberos  (Lycophr.  239),  Comatam  (Theocrit.  vii.  78),  denique  So- 
tadem  poetam  (Athen.  xiv.  cap.  4)." — Musgrave. 

^  It  is  singular  that  in  all  cases  of  this  live-burial,  either  ancient  or 
modern,  we  find  the  custom  prevail  of  leaving  a  certain  quantity  of  food 
with  the  victim.  In  Greece  it  was  held  impious  to  suffer  any  one  to  die 
of  famine,  and  this  was  a  kind  of  juggling  way  of  satisfying  the  con- 


188  ANTIGONE.  [77G-  -805 

that  all  the  city  may  avoid  the  pollutioTi.  There,  imploring 
Pluto,  whom  alone  of  gods  she  reveres,  she  will  obtain  a  res- 
pite from  death,  or  will  know  at  least  then  that  it  is  lost  trou- 
ble to  pay  reverence  to  those  in  the  shades. 

CiiOKL'S.  O  Love  !  unconquerable  in  the  fight.  Love  !  who 
lightest  on  wealth,^  who  makcst  thy  couch  in  the  soft  cheeks'^ 
of  the  youthful  damsel,  and  roamest  be3'ond  the  sea,  and  mid 
the  rural  cots,  thee  shall  neither  any  of  the  immortals  escape, 
nor  of  men  the  creatures  of  a  day  ;-^  but  he  that  feels  thee  is 
that  instant  maddened.  Thou  for  their  ruin  seducest  the  minds 
of  the  just  to  injustice  ;  thou  hrist  stirred  up  this  strife  of  kin- 
dred men,  and  desire  revealed  from  the  eyes^  of  the  beauteous 
bride  wins  the  victory,  desire  that  holds  its  seat^  beside  the 
mighty  law^s  in  rule ;  for  the  goddess  Venus  v/antons  uncon- 
querable among  all.  But  now  already  I  too  am  borne  with- 
out the  pale  of  laws,  beholding  this  spectacle ;  and  I  am  no 
longer  able  to  restrain  the  fountr.ins  of  tears,  when  I  here  see 
Antigone  passing  on  her  way  to  the  chamber  where  all  repose. 

Gcicncc  that  the  pollution  was  avoided.  In  modern  times  the  practice 
seems  to  have  been  continued  with  the  cruel  object  of  prolonging  the  tor- 
ments of  such  a  horrible  existence. — Tr.  For  Oriental  illustrations,  see 
Lane,  Arabian  Nights,  vol.  iii.  p.  102,  note  35. — B. 

^  Donaldson,  partly  after  Ivci.sig,  would  take  KrrifiaGL,  according  to 
Plato's  dictum,  that  men  are  the  KrijiiaTa  of  the  gods,  and  that  the  poet 
means  that  Love,  by  his  attacks,  enslaves  men  at  once,  rendering  them 
KTTJfcara. — C 

2 Chia3 

Pulchris  excubat  in  genis. — Horace. 

^  We  may  safely  put  in  contrast  with  this  Chorus,  though  highly  beau- 
tiful, the  following  lines  on  the  same  subject  from  one  of  the  lirst  of 
modern  poets  : 

In  peace.  Love  tunes  the  shepherd's  reed  ; 

In  war  he  mounts  the  warriors  steed  ; 

In  halls,  in  gay  attire  is  seen  ; 

In  hamlets,  dances  on  the  green. 

Love  rules  the  court,  the  camp,  the  grove, 

And  men  below,  and  saints  above  ; 

For  love  is  heaven,  and  heaven  is  love. 

Lay  of  the  Last  Minstrel,  Canto  iii.  2. 

*  1  Cf  Eurip.  Hipp.  525.  "Epwj"  "Epw^ ,  6  icar'  v/i/ndruv  Uru^eig  ttCBov. 
Achilles  Tatius  vi.  p.  375,  i:~euh)  elg  ru  ofifiaTa  ruv  KalcJv  to  kuaIoc, 
KilO]]TaL,  peov  iKEiOev  ettc  tov^  opda/./Jovg  ruv  opuvTuv. — B. 

^  But  see  Donaldson.  Whence  the  translator  got  *•  in  hcavc7i''s  rule,"' 
I  can  not  tell. — B. 


ROG— 852.]  ANTIGONE.  -  ISO 

iVxT.  Behold  mc,  yc  citizens  of  mj  fiitiicr-land,  advancing 
on  this  last  jojrney,  and  beholding  tlie  light  of  the  sun  for  the 
last  time  and  never  again  ;  but  Hades,  Avhose  chamber  receives 
all,  conducts  me,  living,  to  the  shore  of  Acheron,  neither  bless- 
ed with  the  lot  of  wedlock, ^  nor  hath  the  bridal  lay  yet  hymn- 
ed VAQ,  but  I  shall  be  the  bride  of  Acheron. 

Cii.  Nay,  but  renowned  and  enjoying  praise  you  descend  to 
this  recess  of  the  dead,  neither  struck  by  wasting  disease,  nor 
having  received  the  award  of  the  sword ;  but  in  freedom  and 
in  life  you  alone  of  mortals  shall  descend  to  Hades. 

AxT.  I  have  heard  that,  by  a  most  mournful  fate,  perished, 
on  the  promontory  of  Sipylus,  the  Phrygian  stranger,^  daugh- 
ter of  Tantalus.  Pier,  like  the  clinging  ivy,  did  the  shoots  of 
rock  subdue ;  and  hei',  dissolving  away  in  showers,  as  the  le- 
gends of  mortals  tell,  the  snow  never  leaves;  and  from  her 
eyes,  that  ever  flow  Avith  tears,  she  bedews  the  cliffs.  Most 
like  her,  the  god  lulls  me  to  sleep. 

Cii.  But  she  was  a  goddess,  and  of  heavenly  birth  ;  and  we 
arc  mortals,  and  of  mortals  born.  And  jct  to  you  a  perisha- 
ble creature,  it  is  high  fame  to  meet  with  a  fate  like  the  peers 
of  the  gods. 

A^rr.  Woe  is  nie  !  I  am  derided.  Why,  by  the  gods  of  my 
fathers,  do  you  insult  me,  not  yet  dead,  but  still  beheld  in 
sight?  O  my  country  !  O  my  countrymen,  of  rich  estate  !  O 
yc  fountains  of  Dirce,  and  grove  of  Thebe,  the  renowned  for 
the  car  !  I  take  you  withal  jointly  to  witness,  how  unlamcnted 
by  my  friends,  and  by  what  laws  I  go  to  the  sepulchral  dun- 
geon of  my  untimely  tomb.  O,  v/oe  is  me  !  who  am  neither  a 
dweller  among  men  nor  shades,  the  living  nor  the  dead. 

^  Antigone,  in  these  beautiful  and  swan-like  dirges,  more  than  once 
expresses  her  regret  for  never  having  experienced  the  marriage  jo^'s. 
There  is  nothing  indelicate,  except  to  the  eye  of  false  refinement,  in  this 
candid  declaration  of  natural  feeling.  "VVe  tind  an  equally  pure  illustra- 
tion of  the  same  sentiment  in  the  case  of  Jephtha  s  daughter,  v.'ho  went 
"and  bewailed  her  virginity  upon  the  mountains."  Her  example  was 
even  admired  ;  for  "  it  was  a  custom  in  Israel,  that  the  daughters  of  Is- 
rael went  yearly  to  lament  the  daughter  of  Jephtha  the  Gileadite  four  days 
in  a  year." — Judges  xi. 

^  Niobe,  who  was  chano-ed  into  stone  for  having  brasrgcd  Latona  with 
her  children.  Agathias,  an  old  quaint  fool,  has  the  following  Imes  on  thi3 
hard  punishment : 

'O  TVfJiSnr  ovrnr  ii'(hv  ol'K  ';(ei  v'kvi', 
'O  veupuQ  ovTor  ucrog  vvk  cycl  rd^ov. 


190  ANTIGONE.  [853—903. 

CiT.  Having  r.dvaRCcd  to  Ihc  extreme  of  audacity,  tlioii  liast 
violently  dashed,  my  child,  acrainst  the  lofty  throne  of  justice. 
Thou  payest  some  penalty  of  thy  father. 

Ant.  Thou  hast  touched  on  a  thought  niost  painful  to  me, 
the  thrice-renowned  griefs  of  my  father,  and  the  fate  of  all  our 
race,  the  illustrious  children  of  Lahdacus.  AVoe !  for  the 
curses  that  attended  my  mother  s  bed,  the  incestuous  connec- 
tion of  my  wretched  mother  with  my  father,  from  Avliich  I,  un- 
happy, formerly  sprung !  and  now  accurst,  unblessed  by  nup- 
tials, I  go  to  sojourn  vrith  my  parents.  O  my  brother !  hav- 
ins:  met  with  an  ill-fated  marriage, ^  dying,  thou  hast  destroyed 
me,  yet  in  life. 

Cii.  To  act  reverently  is  an  act  of  piety ;  but  power,  to 
whomsoever  poAv'er  is  intrusted,  must  not  in  any  way  be  trans- 
gressed.    Thy  self-willed  temper  has  destroyed  thee. 

Ant.  Unwept,  and  friendless,  and  unwedded,  I,  wretched, 
am  conducted  on  this  destined  ■Nva}^  It  is  no  longer  allowed 
me,  unhappy,  to  look  on  this  luminary's  sacred  eye ;  and  no 
friend  mourns  mine  unwept  doom. 

Cr.  Know  ye  not  that  no  one  would  cease  from  dirges  and 
wailinfrs  before  death,  if  it  were  of  avail  to  utter  them '?  Will 
ye  not  lead  her  as  quickly  as  possible,  having  inclosed  her,  as 
I  directed,  in  the  caverned  tomb,  leave  her  by  herself  alone, 
whether  it  is  fated  she  shall  die  or  lead  a  life  entombed  in 
such  a  dwelling.  For  we  are  free  from  pollution  as  respects 
this  virgin,  but,  at  all  events,  she  shall  be  deprived  of  abodt. 
above. 

Ant.  O  tomb !  O  bridal  chamber !  O  c?vcayated,  ever> 
guarded  dwelling !  where  I  go  to  mine  o\vn,  of  whom  now 
perished  Proserpine  has  received  the  gTeatest  number  among 
the  dead,  and  of  whom  I  descend  the  last,  and  by  a  fate  far  the 
most  wretched,  before  having  fuliilled  my  term  of  life !  De- 
parting, however,  I  strongly  cherish  in  my  hope  that  I  shall 
come  dear  to  my  father,  and  dear  to  thee,  my  mother,  and  dear 
to  thee,  O  brother  dear;  since  T,  with  my  own  hand,  washed 
you  when  dead,  and  decked  you  out,  and  poured  the  libations 
over  your  tomb :  and  now,  Pohniccs,   having   buried  your 

^  Polyniccs  wedded  the  daughter  of  Adrastus,  king  of  Argos;  and  be- 
ing, from  this  powerful  alliance,  induced  to  undertake  tlic  expedition 
against  Thebes,  lie  met  v.ith  his  own  death,  and  entailed  a  still  more 
wretched  fate  on  his  sister. 


934-933  ]  ANTIGONE.  191 

body,  I  gain  such  a  reward.  And  yet,  in  the  opinion  of  those 
who  have  just  sentiments,  I  honored  you  aright.  For  nei- 
ther, though  I  had  been  the  mother  of  children,  nor  though 
my  husband  dying,  had  mouldered  away,  would  I  have  under- 
taken this  toil  against  the  will  of  the  citizens.  On  account  of 
what  L\w  do  I  say  this  '?  There  would  have  been  another  hus- 
band for  me  if  the  first  died,  and  if  I  lost  my  child  there  would 
have  been  another  from  another  man !  but  my  father  and  my 
mother  being  laid  in  the  grave,  it  is  impossible  a  brother  should 
ever  be  born  to  me.^  On  the  principle  of  such  a  law,  having 
preferred  you,  my  brother,  to  all  other  considerations,  I  seemed 
to  Creon  to  commit  a  sin,  and  to  dare  what  was  dreadful. 
And  now,  seizing  me  by  force,  he  thus  leads  me  away,  having 
never  enjoyed  the  nuptial  bed,  nor  heard  the  nuptial  lay,  nor 
having  gained  the  lot  of  marriage,  nor  of  rearing  my  children  ; 
but  thus  I,  an  unhappy  woman,  deserted  by  my  friends,  go, 
while  alive,  to  the  cavern  of  the  dead.  Having  transgressed 
— what  justice  of  the  gods  ?  what  need  is  there  for  m.e,  a  mis- 
erable wretch,  to  look  any  longer  to  the  gods  ?  What  ally  can 
I  invoke,  since  at  least  by  observing  piety  I  have  obtained  t!.;5 
reward  of  impiety  ?  But  if  these  things  are  good  amoiv:^  th^ 
gods,  suffering,  we  may  be  made  conscious  of  our  err;  r ;  but 
if  my  enemies  be  guilty,  may  they  not  suffer  more  evils  than 
they  unjustly  infiict  on  me. 

Cn.  The  same  blasts  of  the  same  storms  of  the  soul  still 
possess  her. 

Ck.  Tears,  therefore,  shall  arise  upon  those  who  conduct 
her,  for  their  slov>mess. 

Ant.  Woe  is  me !  this  command  has  come  close  upon 
death. 

Cr.  I  give  you  no  hope  to  console  you  that  these  things 
shall  not  be  consummated  in  this  way. 

^  There  is  a  story  in  Herodotus,  of  this  very  principle  having  been  acted 
upon.  The  whole  family  of  Intapheriie3  being  condemned  to  death,  his 
Wife  prevailed  on  Darius,  by  her  lamentations,  to  grant  her  the  life  of  one 
of  her  kindred.  She  chose  to  save  her  brother,  and  gave  the  same  reasons 
as  AntifTone  for  neirlectinsf  her  husband  and  children.    The  two  ladies  may 

C?  O  G  ••11  • 

reason  very  subtilely  on  the  jioint,  but  the  prmciplc  they  go  upon  is  ev- 
idently false.  The  original  institution  that  "  a  man  should  leave  his  fa- 
tbei*  and  his  mother,  and  should  cleave  unto  his  wife,"  is  no  less  agrcc- 
ab!o  to  nature  than  to  reason  and  revelation.  The  example  cf  Alcestis 
will  always  be  more  admired  than  that  of  the  v.ife  of  Intapherne.3. 


102  ANTIGO.NE.  [937—983. 

A>;t.  O  ni\ti\'C  city  of  the  land  of  Thobe,  and  gods  of  my 
fiithcr's  race,  I  am  liurried  along,  and  have  no  more  rc&:p!te. 
Behold,  yc  rulers  of  Thebes,  Ihc  last  remaining  of  the  royal 
race,  v/hat  deeds  I  sufier  at  the  hands  of  what  men  for  having 
revered  religion. 

Cn.  The  form  of  Danae,^  too,  endured  to  change  the  light 
cf  heaven  ;  in  dungeons  secured  with  brass,  and  concealed  in 
a  sepulchral  chamber,  she  Avas  bound.  And  yet  she  was  hon- 
ored in  her  race,  my  child,  my  child,  and  cherished  the  seed 
cf  Jove,  that  flowed  in  golden  shower.  lUit  the  power  of  fate 
is  a  marvelous  one.  Keither  tempest,  nor  v\'ar,  nor  tower, 
nor  black  sea-beaten  ships,  escape  its  control.  To  that  yoke, 
too,  w^as  bowed  the  keen-wrathed  son  of  Drvas,^  kino;  of  the 
Edonians,  being  prisoned  by  Bacchus  for  his  virulent  temper 
in  the  bonds  of  rock;  and  thus  he  distills  the  dreadful  venom 
of  madness,  ever  bursting  up  afresh.  He  knew,  when  too  late, 
that^  it  was  a  god  he  had  glanced  at  in  his  phrcnsy  with  revil- 
ing words.  For  he  would  have  put  a  stop  to  the  inspired  maids 
and  the  Bacchic  flame ;  and  he  chafed  the  Muses,  the  lovers  of 
song.  B}'  tlie  Cyanean  deeps  of  the  double  sea,  the  shores  of 
the  Bosphorus,  and  the  Thracian  Saimydessus  (where  Mars 
dv.-clls  near  their  cities),  sav/  the  accursed  v/ound,  inflicted 
v/ith  blindness,  on  the  two  sons  of  Phineus,  by  a  fell  step- 
mother,^ a  darkening  Avound,  imprinted  on  the  Avretched  balls 
of  their  eyes,  with  bloody  hands,  by  the  spear,  and  the  points 
of  the  shuttle ;  and  pining  tiwnj  in  miseiy,  they  wept  the 
wrctclied  sufierings  of  their  mother,  wlio  bore  tlie  children  cf 
an  ill-fated  marriage.  But  she  owned  the  seed  of  the  sons  cf 
Ercctheus,^  of  ancient  lineage ;  and  in  far  distant  caves  w£is 

^  The  Chorus,  in  this  wild  and  beautiful  strain,  console  Antigone  with 
tho  enumeration  of  other  fates  as  wretched  as  her  own.  It  lias  been  v/cU 
enough  observed  that  the  examples  they  quote  of  Danae  and  Lycurgus 
arc  not  compared  to  her  in  their  crimes,  but  their  sulleritigs. 

-  The  son  of  Dryas  was  Lycurgus,  who,  having  routed  the  Bacchana- 
lians from  his  territory,  was  punished  by  their  gcd  witli  some  severe  doom, 
here  described  as  imprisonment,  but  variously  related  by  various  authors. 

^  Donaldson  reads  nelvog  kirtyvu  6^  diaig. — B. 

"*  Idaia,  who  barbarously  put  out  the  eyes  of  Plexippus  and  Pandion, 
the  .'^ono  of  Phineus,  by  his  lirst  wife  Cleopatra. 

^  Her  mother  Oritbyia  was  the  daughter  cf  Ercctheus,  and  wife  of 
Boreas.  It  was  on  this  claim  of  kindred  thut  the  Athenians,  in  obedience 
to  the  oracle,  asked  the  aid  of  their  son-in-la-.v  Boreas  during  the  Persian 
invasion. 


034—1019.]  ANTIGONE.  193 

nursed,  amid  the  storms  of  Iicr  father,  n,  daughter  of  Boreas,^ 
rivaling  the  steed  in  swiftness,  as  she  bonnded  over  the  lofty 
mountains,  child  of  heaven  ;  but  even  over  her,  my  daughter, 
the  eternal  Fates  prevailed. 

TiKEsiAS.  Ye  princes  of  Thebes,  we  come  on  this  common 
way,  two  seeing  by  one,  for  the  journey  of  the  blind  is  made 
by  a  guide. 

Ck-  But  what  new  event,  O  aged  Tiresias,  has  happen- 
ed ? 

TiR.  I  will  teach  you,  and  do  you  obey  the  prophet. 

Ce.  I  Avas  not  formerly  wont  to  depart  from  your  advice. 

TiK.  Wherefore  you  direct  aright  the  helm  of  this  state. 

Cr.  I  testily  the  advantages  I  have  experienced. 

TiR.  Consider  that  you  now  again  stand  on  the  very  edge 
of  fate. 

Cr-  What  is  it  ?     How  I  shudder  at  your  word^ ! 

TiR.  You  shall  know,  hearing  the  signs  of  my  art.  For, 
sitting  down  on  my  ancient  augural  seat,  where  was  my 
station  for  all  augury,  I  hear  an  unknovv-n  sound  of  bird^, 
beating  the  air  with  ill-omened  and  unwonted  fury,  and  I 
perceived  that  they  were  tearing  each  other  Vv'ith  bloody 
talons ;  for  tlie  clashing'  of  their  Aviniis  cave  clexu'  indication. 
Being  alarmed,  I  straightway  essayed  the  divination  by  fire 
on  the  bla2;inn;  altars ;  and  from  the  sacrifice  the  flame  burst 
not  forth,  but  on  the  ashes  a  clammy  vapor  kept  oozing 
from  the  thighs,  and  burned  up,  and  sputtered,  and  the  entrails 
were  scattered  in  air,  and  the  thighs,^  melting  away,  fell 
out  from  the  involving  caul.  Such  expiring^  omens  of  mys- 
terious rites  I  learned  from  this  boy ;  for  he  is  a  guide  to  me, 
and  I  to  others.  And  the  city  is  afflicted  wath  this  from  your 
determination ;  for  our  altars,  and  ail  our  liearths,  are  full  of 
birds  and  dogs,  feeding  on  the  body  of  the  wretched  son  of 
G^^dipus;  and  the  god^  no  longer  accept  from  us  the  sacri- 

^  Bopecif,  u6og,  a  patronymic  appellation  for  a  n3-mph  descended  from 
Boreas. 

^  The  thighs  were  the  part  of  the  sacrifice  appropriated  to  the  gods, 
because,  says  Eustathius,  they  are  useful  to  men  for  walking  and  gener- 
ation. It  is  clear  enough  that  the  thighs  are  considerably  useful  in  these 
important  functions,  but  v.hy  for  this  reason  they  should  be  peculiarly 
acceptable  to  the  gods  is  by  no  means  so  obvious. 

3  ^Oti-ovr',  cvancsccntia.  Mali  ominis  crat  in  ignispiciis  quicquid 
debilj  ct  cvanidum  crat. — Musgrave. 

I 


194  ANTIGONE.  [1020—1061. 

ficial  prayer,  nor  the  flame  of  the  thighs ;  nor  docs  bird  send 
forth  the  notes  of  propitious  omen,  being  gorged  Avith  the 
fat  of  human  gore.  These  things,  therefore,  my  son,  consider ; 
for  it  is  common  to  all  men  to  err;  but  when  one  may  err, 
he  is  no  longer  an  unwise  nor  an  infatuated  man,  who,  having 
fallen  into  evil,  is  cured,  nor  remains  immovable.  Obstinacy 
incurs  the  imputation  of  folly.  AVar  not  with  the  fallen,  nor 
wound  the  dead.  What  prowess  is  it  to  slay  the  slain  ? 
Being  well-disposed  toward  you,  I  advise  you  well ;  and  it  is 
most  pleasing  to  learn  from  a  good  adviser,  if  his  advice  bring 
advantage. 

Cr.  Old  man,  ye  all,  like  archers  at  a  mark,  discharge  your 
shafts  at  me ;  and  I  am  not  unacquainted  with  the  arts  of 
prophets,  by  the  race  of  whom  I  have  long  since  been  made 
the  subject  of  barter  and  traffic.  Pursue  your  gain,  make  your 
purchase,  if  you  choose,  of  the  amber  of  Sardis  and  the  gold 
of  India  ;  but  him  ye  shall  never  inclose  in  the  tomb  ;  not  even 
though  the  eagles  of  Jove,  seizing  him  as  their  prey,  should 
bear  him  to  the  throne  of  the  god  ;  not  even  thus,  dreading 
the  pollution,  would  I  permit  his  burial.  For  I  Avell  know 
that  no  mortal  is  able  to  pollute  the  gods.  But,  O  aged  Tire- 
sias,  even  those  men  who  are  clever  in  many  things  meet  with 
disgraceful  falls,  when,  for  the  sake  of  gain,  they  plead  spe- 
ciously a  base  argument. 

TiR.  Ha !  does  any  man  know,  docs  he  consider — 

Ck.  What  is  the  matter?     What  trite  saying  is  this? 

TiR.  By  how  much  wisdom  is  the  best  of  possessions  ? 

Cr.  By  so  much,  methinks,  as  folly  is  the  greatest  bane. 

TiR.  You,  however,  are  by  nature  full  of  this  malady. 

Cr.  I  do  not  wish  to  bandy  reproach  with  a  prophet. 

TiR.  And  yet  you  do,  saying  that  I  prophesy  what  is  false. 

Cr.  For  all  the  race  of  prophets  are  lovers  of  gain. 

TiR.  But  that  of  kings  loves  base  gain. 

Cr.  Do  you  know  that  you  address  what  you  say  to  your 
rulers  ? 

TiR.  I  know  it ;  for,  liaving  preser\'ed  by  my  means  this 
city,  you  sway  it. 

Cr.  You  are  a  skillful  prophet,  but  given  to  injustice. 

TiR.  You  will  force  me  to  utter  the  secrets  that  lie  unmoved 
in  my  breast. 

(JR.  Move  them,  only  do  not  speak  for  gain.  , 


10G3— 1098.]  ANTIGONE.  195 

TiR.  For  thus  do  I  already  seem  to  have  spoken,  as  far  as 
regards  your  part  ? 

Ck.  Know  that  you  shall  not  sell  my  resolution. 

TiR.  But  do  you  too  know  well  that  you  shall  not  any 
longer  see  to  their  end  many  courses  of  the  sun  in  rival  speed, 
beibre  that  yourself  repay  one  sprung  from  your  own  bowels, 
dead,  a  recompense  for  the  dead,  in  return  for  having  sent 
one  who  Avas  in  upper  air  below  the  earth,  and  dishonorably 
made  a  living  being  to  dwell  in  the  tomb,  and  for  having,  on 
the  other  hand,  detained  here  one  debarred  from  intercourse 
with  the  infernal  deities,  arid  deprived  of  funeral  obsequies 
an  unhalloAved  corpse ;  in  Avhich  things  neither  any  conceiii 
appertains  to  you,  nor  to  the  gods  above.  But  these  things 
are  done  with  violent  injustice  by  you ;  for  this,  the  Furies 
of  Hades,  and  of  the  gods,  avenging  Avith  penal  consequence, 
lie  in  ambush  for  you,  that  you  may  be  enthralled  by  the  same 
misfortunes.  See  if,  induced  by  money,  I  prophesy  this ; 
for  the  lapse  of  no  long  time  shall  exhibit  the  mourning  of 
men  and  Avomen  in  your  palace ;  and  all  the  states  shall  be 
stirred  up  together  in  enmitA'J  the  mangled  bodies  of  AAdiose 
citizens  or  dogs  haA'e  polluted,  or  Avild  beasts,  or  some  winged 
bird,  bearing  an  unhalloAA^ed  stench  to  the  altars  of  the  city. 
Such  unerring  arroAvs,  since  you  pain  me,  I  have  discharged, 
like  an  archer,  in  anger  from  my  soul,  and  their  Avarm  smart 
you  shall  not  escape.  But  do  you,  boy,  conduct  me  home, 
that  he  may  vent  his  passion  upon  younger  men,  and  may 
knovi^  to  nurse  a  more  temperate  tongue,  and  feelings  better 
than  the  mind  he  noAv  bears. 

Cii.  The  man,  O  king,  has  departed,  having  predicted  dread- 
ful events ;  and  I  knoAv,  from  the  time  that  I  changed  this 
hair  into  Avhite  from  black,  that  he  never  once  declared  to  the 
city  Avhat  A\'as  false. 

Cr.  I  also  liave  known  it,  and  I  am  disturbed  in  my 
tlioughts ;  but  to  yield  Avere  coAvardly ;  and  there  is  danger 
that,  by  resisting,  I  afflict  my  mind  AA'ith  calamity. 

Cii.  There  is  need,  O  Creon,  son  of  Menoeccus,  of  prudent 
counsel. 

^  Those  states  that  had  joined  in  the  expedition,  and  whose  dead  v»-ere 
r.il  !cfc  unburieJ.  Their  being  stirred  up  in  enmity  is  a  prophetic  allusion 
to  the  expedition  of  the  Epiijoni,  \<\\o  conquered  Thebes  to  revenge  tao 
iiii:L;fjrtunes  of  their  fathers  before  its  walls. 


19G  ANTIGONE.  [1093—1129. 

Ck.  "What,  in  truth,  is  it  requisite  to  do?  Tell  mc,  and  I 
will  obey. 

Cii.  Going,  release  the  virgin  from  her  subterraneous  abode, 
and  prepare  a  tomb  for  the  body  that  lies  exposed. 

Ck.  And  do  you  approve  of  this,  and  think  I  ought  to 
yield  ? 

Cii.  Ay,  and  as  quickly  too,  O  king,  as  possible,  for  the 
swift-footed  vengeance  of  Heaven  cuts  short  those  who  are  of 
wicked  minds. 

Ce.  Ah  me !  it  is  with  difficulty  indeed,  but  still  I  am 
chan'ged  from  my  purpose  to  do  it.  We  must  not  maintain  an 
unequal  combat  with  necessity. 

Cii.  Goinn,  now,  do  these  thiniis ;  do  not  intrust  them  to 
others. 

Ck.  Thus,  as  I  am,  I  will  go.  But  ye  attendants,  both  pres- 
ent and  absent,  taking  axes  in  your  hands,  rush  to  tlie  conspic- 
uous spot ;  and  since  my  opinion  has  been  converted  in  this 
way,  as  I  myself  bound  her,  so,  being  present,  I  \nS\.  set  her  at 
liberty  ;  for  I  fear  lest  it  be  not  best,  preserving  the  established 
laws,  to  close  life. 

CiiOKrs.  O  thou,  who  art  hailed  by  many  a  name,^  g^ory 
of  the  Theban  nymph,  and  son  of  deeply-thundering  Jove, 
who  swayest  renowned  Italia,  and  president  o'er  tlie  rites  of 
Ceres,  in  the  vales  of  Eleusis,  open  to  all !  O  Bacchus,  who 
dwellest  in  Thebe,  the  mother  city  of  the  Bacchanals,  by  the 
flowing  streams  of  Ismenus,  and  the  fields  wliere  the  teeth 
of  the  fell  dragon  were  sown ;  thee,  the  smoke  beheld  as  it 
burst  into  flame  above  the  double-crested  rock,^  where  roam 

^  Bacchus  was  rich  in  names,  chiefly  dcriveil  from  his  attributes.  They 
were  Lyaeus,  Lenasus,  Bassareus,  Bromius,  Euius,  Eieleus,  Diihyrambus, 
and  fifty  others. 

^  artpoil' — Atrvvg,  lucidus,  vcl  candens,  fuifjidus  vapor. — Musgravc. 
This  smoke  or  flame,  or  both,  Avhich  denoted  the  presence  or  approach 
of  the  god  on  the  summits  of  Parnassus,  is  frequently  celebrated  by  the 
poets ; 

lu  ?.au~ovaa  irtrpa  Trrpof 

SlKUpV(l)OV  Gt/.ag,   Vntp  UKpUV 

Baicxduv.  Eurip.  Phcenissse,  237. 

ivOa  nvp  7r7](^d  Oeov 


BaKxduv.  Eurip.  Ion.  1125. — Tr. 

On  the  light  which  was  supposed  to  shine  at  the  approacli  of  a  god, 
see  Virg.  .En.  I.  400  ;   IT.  590.     Ovid.  Faet.  I.  91— B. 


1]30— 1171.]  ANTIGONE.  197 

tlic  Corycian  nymplis,^  the  votaries  of  Bacclius,  and  the  fount 
of  Castalia  flows  ;  and  thee  the  ivy-crowned  steeps  of  the  xsys- 
ian  mountains,^  and  the  green  shore,  with  its  many  clusters, 
triumphant  send  along,^  amid  the  immortal  v\'ords,  that  hymn 
thy  "  Evoe !"  to  reign  the  guardian  of  the  streets  of  Thebe, 
whom  you  honor  liighcst  of  all  cities,  along  with  your 
mother  that  perished  by  the  thunder.  And  now,  since  the 
city  with  all  its  people  is  enthralled  by  a  violent  disease, 
come  with  healing  steps,  over  the  slopes  of  Parnassus,  or  the 
resoundino:  aulf  of  the  sea.^  O  leader  of  the  choir  of  flame- 
breathing  stars,^  director  of  the  voices  that  sound  by  night, 
youthful  god,  son  of  Jove,  reveal  th}'self  along  with  thy  min- 
istering Moenads,  the  Tsaxian  maids,  who  maddening  through 
this  livelong  night,  celebrate  thee  with  the  dance,  thee  their 
lord  lacchus. 

Messexgek.  Ye  inhabitants  of  the  abodes  of  Cadmus  and 
Amphion,  it  is  impossible  that  I  should  ever  praise  or  blame 
the  life  of  man  in  Avhatever  condition  it  may  be ;  for  Fortune 
always  raises,  and  Fortune  casts  down  the  prosperous  and  the 
unprosperous,  and  no  one  is  prescient  of  v/hat  is  decreed  for 
mortals.  For  Creon  once,  as  appeared  to  me,  was  enviable, 
having  preserved  this  land  of  Cadmus  from  the  enemy,  and  re- 
ceiving the  complete  dominion  of  the  country,  he  directed  it, 
Ikippiiy  flourishing  with  a  noble  race  of  children  ;  and  now  all 
is  gone.  For  when  a  person  loses  the  pleasures  of  life,  T  do 
not  consider  him  to  live,  but  look  upon  him  as  the  living  dead. 
Let  h'iPA  have  great  wealth,  if  you  choose,  in  his  house,  and 
live  with  the  outward  splendor  of  a,  king;  but  if  joy  be  want- 
ing to  these,  I  would  not  purchase  the  rest  with  the  shadow 
of  smoke  compared  with  the  real  pleasures. 

^  So  called  from  the  Cyprian  grotto,  their  consecrated  abode  at  the 
foot  of  Mount  Parnassus. 

-  There  were  various  mountains  of  this  narae.  Nysa,  in  Euboea,  is  sup- 
posed to  be  the  one  alluded  to  here. 

^  "triumphant  lead."  Such  is  the  force  of  7re/j.-sn',  when  speaking  of 
a  god  led  in  procession,  ^sch.  Eum.  12,  Tre/i-ovai  6'  avTuv  kol  gejU- 
(^rjGtv  [itya.  Sedulius  Paschal.  18,  uses  a  semi-barbarous  word,  "  pcm- 
pLirc :"  "  Grandisonis  pomparc  modis.''  "With  tho  whole  descripdon 
compare  Aristoph.  Thesmoph.  988,  sqq.  ;   Ivan.  325,  sqq. — B. 

^  Crossing  from  Eubcca  to  Boeotia. 

^  Some  take  these  v»^ords  literaliy,  others  regard  thou;  as  ^gurative  of 
\>ic  torches  borne  by  the  Bacchanals. 


198  ANTIGONE.  [1172— 119'J 

Cii.  What  burden  of  sorrow  on  our  princes  is  this  again, 
that  you  come  to  tell  1 

Mess.  They  are  dead ;  and  the  living  are  guilty  of  their 

death. 

Cii.   And   who   was    the    slayer?    and   who  is  the   slain? 

Speak. 

Mi:ss.  Ilasraon  has  perished,  and  by  a  suicidal  hand  he  is 
dyed  with  blood. 

Cii.  Whether  by  his  fathers  hand,  or  his  own?^ 

Mess.  Himself,  by  his  own  hand,  being  angry  with  his  fa- 
ther on  account  of  the  murder. 

Ch.  O  prophet !  how  correctly  have  you  declared  this  pre- 
diction ! 

Mess.  As  these  things  being  so,  you  may  deliberate  on  the 
rest. 

Ch.  And  in  truth  I  see  near  at  hand  the  wretched  Eur^-d- 
ice,  wife  of  Creon  ;  and  having  neither  heard  of  her  son,  or  by 
chance,  she  is  passing  from  the  palace. 

EcRVDiCE.  O  all  ye  citizens,  I  heard  the  rumor,  at  least, 
as  I  v/as  going  out  in  order  that  I  might  repair  to  the  tem- 
ple of  the  goddess  Pallas,  her  suppliant  in  prayer;  and  I 
chance  to  be  undoing  the  bars  of  the  fastened  gate,  and  the 
voice  of  domestic  affliction  strikes  my  ears.  Moved  by  terror, 
I  fall  prostrate  in  the  arms  of  my  attendants  and  faint  away. 
But  whatever  was  the  tale,  repeat  it ;  for  not  untried  by  mis- 
fortune, I  shall  hear  it. 

Mess.  I,  my  dear  mistress,  being  present,  will  tell  it,  and 
I  will  not  omit  a  word  of  the  truth.  For  why  should  I  alle- 
viate that  to  you  in  which  I  should  afterward  be  detected 
of  falsehood  ?  The  truth  is  always  right.  I  followed  your 
husband  an  attendant  on  foot  to  the  extremity  of  the  plain, 
where  still  lay  the  unpitied  body  of  Polyniccs,  mangled  by 
dogs ;  and  him,  indeed,  having  implored  the  goddess  that  is 

^  The  ignorance  of  fat-brained  commentators  has  led  them  to  make  a 
row  about  this  question  being  put  by  the  Chorus,  after  the  Messenger  liad 
announced  the  death  of  Hacmon  by  his  own  hand.  The  schoHast,  simple 
soul,  will  have  it  that  the  Chorus,  in  their  agitation,  heard  no  more  than 
the  words,  "  Haemon  has  perished."  Musgravc  and  Heath  blunder  in  an 
equally  pitiable  manner.  Any  one  who  had  read  ten  lines  of  Greek  po- 
etry ought  to  have  known  that  the  dying  by  a  kindred  hand  was  consid- 
ered and  spoken  of  as  suicide. — Tu.     Cf.  Liddell,  s.  v. — B. 


1200—1234.]  ANTIGONE.  199 

placed  in  the  highways,^  and  Pluto  to  liave  a  gracious  will, 
we  bathed  with  holy  iavations,  and  having  consumed  what 
remained  of  the  body,  Avith  fresh-plucked  boughs,  and  piled 
up  a  lofty  barrow  of  his  native  soil,  v/e  again  repair  to  the 
rocky  cavern,  the  bridril  chamber  of  the  grave's  betrothed. 
And  some  one  hears  at  a  distance  the  voice  of  loud  lament 
beside  that  unconsecrated  chamber,  and  hastening  he  tells  it  to 
our  master,  Creon  ;  but  round  him,  as  he  approached  nearer, 
there  float  the  indistinct  notes  of  wretched  wailins:,  and  shriek- 
ing,  he  utters  these  mournful  words  :  "  O  unhappy  me  !  am  I 
tiien  a  true  prophet  ?  Do  I  now  advance  on  the  most  ill-fated 
way  of  all  that  I  have  gone  before?  The  voice  of  my  son 
greets'^  me.  Go  with  speed,  ye  attendants,  nearer,  and  stand- 
ing by  the  tomb,  ascertain,  having  penetrated  the  cleft  made  by 
drawing  away  the  stone  close  to  the  mouth,  whether  I  hear 
the  voice  of  Harmon,  or  am  deceived  by  the  gods."  On  the 
command  of  our  desponding  master  we  examined  the  place, 
and  we  see  in  the  extremity  of  the  tomb  the  virgin,  han^ino: 
by  the  neck,  suspended  in  the  woven  noose  of  her  linen  robe, 
and  the  youth  lying  beside  her,  with  his  arms  around  her 
waist,  deploring  the  destruction  of  his  bride  below  the  earth, 
and  the  deeds  of  his  ftither,  and  his  ill-starred  nuptials.  But 
Creon,  when  he  sees  him,  having  uttered  a  dismal  groan,  goes 
in  toward  him,  and  in  the  loud  tone  of  grief  calls  on  him : 
"  O  wretched  man,  what  sort  of  deed  have  you  done  ?  What 
mind  had  you '?  In  what  circumstance  of  calamity  are  you  ru- 
ined ?  Come  forth,  my  son,  suppliant  I  beseech  you."  But 
his  son,  glaring  on  him  with  savage  eyes,  spitting  on  his  face,^ 
and  replying  nothing,  drav/s  his  double-edged  sword  ;^  but 
his  fiither  rushing  away  in  flight,  he  missed  him ;  then  the 
ill-fated   man,  enraged  with   himself,  immediately  stretching 

^  Trivia,  Hecate,  or  Proserpine. 

-  aaivei.  There  is  some  difficulty  in  this  word.  Perhaps  if  we  con- 
sider the  provincialism  by  v>'hich  "  greeting"  is  used  for  "  weeping,"  the 
word  will  appear  less  inapposite  than  otherwise. — B. 

^  I  prefer  '•  spurning  him  with  his  glance."  Bulwcr  adheres  to  the 
other  interpretation. — B. 

*  Aristotle  very  justly  fmds  fault  with  this  incident.  There  is  some- 
thing horrible  and  unnatural  in  the  attempt  of  a  son  to  slay  his  own  fa- 
ther ;  and  since  he  fails  to  execute  his  purpose,  there  is  no  tragical  effect 
produced.     The  spectator  ought  not  to  be  shocked  unnecessarily. 


200  ANTIGONE.  [1235—1258. 

out^  the  sword,  drove  it  to  the  middle  in  his  side,  and  still  in 
possession  of  his  senses,  with  his  enfeebled  arm  he  embraces 
the  vii*gin,2  and  gasping,  he  casts  a  swift  gush  of  gory  drops 
on  lier  pallid  cheek.  And  dead  by  the  dead  the  hapless  youth 
lies,  having  obtained  his  nuptial  rites  in  the  mansions  of  Pluto, 
a  proof  to  the  world  of  rashness,  how  it  attaches  to  man  the 
greatest  of  his  ills. 

Cii.  What  can  you  conjecture  this  to  mean?  The  woman 
has  some  time  since  disappeared  before  uttering  word,  good  or 
bad.3 

Mess.  I  myself  am  also  astonished ;  but  I  live  in  the  hope 
that,  hearing  the  calamities  of  her  son,  she  does  not  deign  to 
make  her  lamentations  public,  but  within,  beneath  the  roof  of 
the  palace,  will  appoint  her  maids  to  mourn  a  domestic  sorrow ; 
for  she  is  not  devoid  of  judgment,  so  as  to  commit  what  is  im- 
proper. 

Cii.  I  know  not ;  for  to  me,  at  least,  a  deep  silence  seemis  to 
portend  something  grievous,  and  an  excess  of  clamorous  grief 
to  be  without  consequence. 

Mess.  But  going  within  the  palace,  we  will  inform  ourselves 
whether  she  secretly  conceals  in  her  enraged  heart  any  unlaw- 
ful purpose ;  for  your  suggestion  is  good,  and  there  is  some- 
thing grievous  in  too  deep  silence. 

Cii.  And  in  truth  here  comes  the  kin";  himself,  havinji  a 
memorable  token  in  his  hand,*  if  we  may  lawfully  so  say — no 

^  tnevraQdc,  pro  en£VTeivu/j.cvog.  Sic,  ut  crat,  ensem  intcntans. — 
Musgrave. 

^  This  description  of  the  two  iil-fated  lovers,  the  dying  and  the  dead, 
contains  the  very  essence  of  poetry  and  tragic  beauty.  A  finer  subject 
for  a  picture  can  not  well  be  imagined. 

^  There  is  something  very  striking  and  fearful  in  the  moody  silence  of 
deep  passion  and  despair. 

jii'j  'k  t7iq  aioTT//^  Tycd'  dvafjpr/^ei  KaKcl. — Qi^dip.  Tyran.  1074. 

A  few  lines  below,  the  Chorus  also  expresses  this  same  feeling  of  appre- 
hension from  the  same  cause. 

*  Creon,  it  would  appear  from  this,  comes  in,  carrying  the  dead  body 
of  Haemon.  Shnksepearc,  in  a  similar  way,  introduces  Lear  with  Cordelia 
in  his  arms.  This  incident  is  well  calculated  for  stage  efiect ;  but  the 
Goths  who  have  mangled  Lear  for  representation,  have  now  left  out  the 
scene  of"  tliat  fair  dead  daughter.'' — Tk.  Macready,  liowcvcr,  lins  shown 
his  wonted  judgment  by  its  restoration.  In  the  present  scene,  Vanden- 
holTs  action  and  declamation  merited  the  hiirhest  commendation. — 11. 


1259—1302  ]  ANTIGONE.  201 

calamity  from  a  foreign  source,  but  he  himself  its  guilty  au- 
thor. 

lEnlcr  Creon,  leaning   upon  the  body  of  his   son,  borne  on  a 
litter.] 

Cr.  Alas !  the  irreparable  and  deadly  errors  of  a  perverted 
mind !  O  ye,  who  look  on  the  kindred  slayers  and  the  slain  ! 
Oh  me  !  for  the  infixtuation  of  my  counsels  !  O  my  son  !  my 
son !  in  your  youth  by  an  untimely  fate  [woe,  woe,  woe, 
woe !],  thou  hast  died,  thou  hast  departed  by  mine,  not  thy 
rashness ! 

Cii.  Ah  me!  how  you  seem  too  late  to  perceive  justice  ! 

Ce.  Ah  me  !  I  AVTctched  gain  it  by  experience  ;  and  on  my 
head  the  god  then  dashed  with  heavy  impulse,  and  drove  me 
on  to  furious  ways ;  having,  alas !  overturned  to  be  trampled 
beneath  foot  my  former  joy.  Alas !  alas !  O  the  toils  of  mor- 
tals !  hapless  toils ! 

Messenger.  O  master,  how,  both  having  the  possessing, 
you  bear  these  evils  in  your  hands,  and  you  seem  coming  soon 
about  to  behold  other  evils  in  your  palace. 

Ce.  And  what,  after  these  calamities,  is  there  still  more  ca- 
lamitous ? 

Mess.  Your  wife  is  dead,  the  full  mother  of  this  corpse,  in 
an  unhappy  fate  by  wounds  just  fresh  inflicted. 

Ce.  O  port  of  the  grave,  that  no  expiation  may  soothe,  why, 
why  do  you  destroy  me  ?  O  thou  that  hast  conveyed  to  me 
the  evil  tidinjjs  of  sorrow,  what  a  tale  dost  thou  tell  ?  Alas  1 
alas  !  thou  hast  a  second  time  dispatched  a  dead  man.  "What, 
O  man,  dost  thou  say?  What  new  intelligence  dost  thou  de- 
liver ?  Woe,  woe,  woe,  woe !  that  the  death  of  my  wife  by 
murder  is  added  to  the  destruction  of  my  son  1 

Mess.  You  may  behold  it ;  for  the  body  is  no  longer  in  the 

inner  recesses. 

[By  a  movement  of  the  iKKvK?iT]fj,a  the  scene  opens  and  discovers  the 
body  o/EuRYDiCE,  surrounded  by  her  attendants.] 

Ce.  "Woe  is  me !  this  other  succeeding  evil  I  "w-retched  be- 
hold. What  then,  what  fate  yet  awaits  me '?  I,  an  unhappy 
wretch,  am  already  bearing  in  my  arms  my  son,  and  I  see  op- 
posite that  other  dead  body.  Alas !  alas,  O  wretched  mother ! 
\]as,  mv  son ! 

Mess.  She,  in  keen  anger,  falling  down  beside  the  altar, 
closes  her  darkening  eyes,  having  first,  indeed,  bewailed  the; 

12 


202  ANTIGONE.  [1303—1353 

illustrious  bed  of  Megareus,  wlio  formerly  died,  and  again  of 
him  before  us ;  and  last,  having  imprecated  a  baneful  fortune 
on  you,  the  murderer  of  your  children. 

Cii.  Woe,  woe,  woe,  woe !  I  am  lluttcred  v/ith  fear.  Why 
does  not  some  one  wound  me  through  with  a  two-edged  sword  ? 
A  wretched  man  am  I,  alas  I  alas !  and  in  a  wretched  fate  am 
I  involved. 

Mess.  As  being  guilty  at  least  of  both  the  one  fate  and  the 
other,  you  were  denounced  by  her  as  she  died. 

Ce.  But  in  what  way  did  she  depart  from  life  in  the 
slaughter  ? 

Mess.  Having  with  her  own  hand  pierced  herself  below 
the  liver,  when  she  heard  the  deei^ly-mournful  suflerings  of 
her  son. 

Cr.  Woe  is  me ;  this  guilt  will  never  apply  to  any  other 
but  me ;  for  I,  a  miserable  wretch,  I  have  slain  thee ;  I  say 
the  truth.  O  ye  attendants,  conduct  me,  with  all  speed  con- 
duct me  v.'ithout ;  me,  who  am  no  more  than  nothingness. 

Cii.  You  bid  what  profits,  if  there  be  any  aught  that  profits 
in  misfortunes ;  for  present  evils,  when  shortest  are  best. 

Ck.  Let  it  come,  let  it  come,  let  the  last  of  my  fates  appear, 
bringing  most  happily  to  me  the  close  of  my  days :  let  it  come, 
let  it  come,  so  that  I  may  never  behold  another  day. 

Mess.  Those  things  are  future ;  of  these  things  present  com- 
mand what  we  ought  to  do ;  for  others  are  a  care  to  those 
whom  it  behooves  to  have  this  care. 

Cr.  But  I  prayed  for  those  things  I  desire. 

Mess.  Pray  now  for  nothing ;  since  there  is  no  escape  to 
mortals  from  predestined  calamity. 

[Creon  is  led  off.'\ 

Cr.  Lead  away  now  without  this  shadow  of  a  man,  who, 
O  my  son,  unwillingly  slew  thee,  and  thee,  too,  my  wife.  O 
wretched  man  that  I  am !  I  neither  know  whither  nor  to 
whom  I  should  look ;  for  every  thing  misguided,  both  in  my 
hands  and  over  my  head,  has  an  intolerable  fate  made  to  burst 
upon  me. 

Cii.  To  be  wise  is  the  first  part  of  happiness ;  and  it  be- 
hooves us  not  to  be  guilty  of  irreverence  in  those  things  at 
least  that  concern  the  gods  ;  for  the  haughty  words  of  the 
vaunting,  paying  the  penalty  of  severe  aflliction,  have  taught 
wisdom  to  old  age. 


■13.1 


TRACHINI^. 


Hercules  having  excited  the  jealous  fears  of  Deianira  by  bringing 
home  the  captive  lole  as  a  new  partner  of  his  bed,  she  sent  him  as  a 
love-charm  a  garment  dipped  in  the  blood  which  fell  from  the  death- 
wound  with  w  hich  the  Centaur  Nessus  had  been  stricken  by  Hercules. 
The  poison  took  a  fatal  effect,  and  Hercules,  perishing  in  agony,  was 
placed  on  a  funeral  pile  on  Mount  CEta,  where  he  was  to  receive  his 
immortality,  and  rest  from  suffering.  Deianira,  in  despair,  slew  her- 
self—B. 


DRAMATIS  PERSOX.E. 


Deianira. 

Attendant. 

Hyllus. 

Chorus. 

Messenger. 


LiCHAS. 

Nurse. 
Old  Man. 
Hercules. 


Deianira.  There  is  an  ancient  saying,  renowned  among 
men,  that  you  can  not  fully  judge  of  the  life  of  mortals,  wheth- 
er it  has  been  good  or  bad  to  an  individual  before  his  death.^ 
But  T,  even  before  I  come  to  the  realms  of  Pluto,  know  that  I 
have  led  my  life  in  misfortune  and  calamity;  I,  who  indeed, 
while  dwelling  in  the  palace  of  my  father  (Eneus,  in  Pleuron,^ 
felt  the  greatest  horror  of  nuptials  of  all  the  ^tolian  maids. 
For  my  suitor  was  a  river,  I  mean  the  Acheloiis,  who,  in  three 
forms,  sought  me  of  my  father :  now  coming  in  full  shape  a 
bull  :^  at  another  time,  a  speckled  wreathed  snake ;  and  at  a 

^  This  sentiment  is  common  enough  ;  but  the  way  in  which  it  is  here 
talked  of,  as  famous  and  proverbial,  shows  us  that  Sophocles  had  in  viev/ 
the  speech  of  Solon  to  Croesus.  If  he  meant  to  make  Deianira  quote  So- 
lon, he  is  guilty  of  a  very  gross  anachronism. — Tr.     See  Hermann. — B. 

^  Pleuron  was  tbe  capital  of  ^Etolia,  and  is  reported  to  have  been  a  city 
of  great  splendor  in  the  early  ages  of  Greece. 

^  This  seems  to  have  been  the  common  way,  in  ancient  times,  of  repre- 
senting rivers.  Homer  has  frequent  allusions  to  it  ;  and  Horace  applies 
the  epithet  "  taariformis"  to  the  Aufidus,  at  a  time  when  such  supersti- 


204  TRACHINLT:.  [13—44. 

tliird,  in  the  body  of  a,  man  witli  the  head  of  a  bull ;  and  from 
bis  thick,  shaggy  beard,  Iho  streams  of  liquid  founts  kept  flow- 
ing. I,  ■\\Tetehed,  having  received  such  a  suitor,  always  j^rayed 
to  die  before  I  should  ever  approach  his  bed.  And  in  late  time 
indeed,  but  to  my  joy,  came  the  illustrious  son  of  Jove  and 
Alcmena,  who  engaging  with  this  monster  in  the  strife  of  bat- 
tie,  delivers  me.  The  manner  of  their  fray  I  am  not  able  to  de- 
scribe ;  for  I  know  it  not ;  but  whosoever  sat  undismayed  dur- 
ing the  spectacle,  he  could  tell  it.^  For  I  sat  confounded  v»'ith 
terror,  lest  my  beauty  might,  on  a  time,  work  my  bane.  But 
Jove,  the  arbiter  of  conflicts,  disposed  the  issue  well,  if  in  truth 
it  be  well ;  for  being  united  his  awarded  bride  to  Hercules,  I 
ever  sustain  fear  succeedino;  fear  in  bodin^;  cares  for  him,  since 
night  brings,  and  night  in  turn  removes  some  toil.  And  I 
indeed  have  borne  him  children,  whom,  like  a  husbandman 
that  hath  a  field  far  distant,  he  hath  once  only  looked  on  in 
the  seed-time,  and  once  again  in  the  harvest.  Such  a  life 
sends  from  home  and  to  home  the  hero,  always  paying  service 
to  some  one  ;'^  and  now,  when  he  has  reached  the  goal  of  these 
labors,  here  in  truth  I  feel  most  alarmed.  For  since  the  time 
that  he  slew  the  mighty  Iphitus,^  we  indeed,  changing  our 
abode,  dwell  here  in  Trachis,  with  a  stranger  host  ;^  but 
where  he  has  gone,  no  one  knows ;  but  he  has  departed,  leav- 
ing bitter  pangs  to  me  on  his  account ;  and  I  am  almost  sure 
that  he  has  met  with  some  mishap.  For  he  remains  for  no 
small  space  of  time,  but  already  for  ten  months,  in  addition  to 

tions  had  rather  gone  by.  There  are  various  accounts  given  of  the  ori- 
gin and  meaning  of  this  fanciful  custom  ;  but  that  which  supposes  it  to 
have  some  reference  to  the  overflowing  of  the  Nile,  when  the  sun  enters 
the  Bull,  though  far-fetched,  is  perhaps  the  least  absurd. 

^  A  spirited  description  of  the  combat  is  given  by  the  Chorus  in  this 
play,  V.  500-530. 

"  Eurystheus,  king  of  Mycenae,  was  the  great  task-master  of  Hercules. 
The  Fates  had  decreed  that  the  one  of  them  who  was  born  first  should 
have  the  other  for  his  slave.  Juno,  the  implacable  step-mother  of  Her- 
cules, took  advantage  of  her  power  as  the  goddess  of  childbirth  to  give 
Eurystheus  the  important  start,  Virgil  aliuJcs  to  this  circumstance, 
^n.  viii.  V.  291. 

ut  duros  mille  labores 

Rege  sub  Eurystheo,  fatis  Junonis  iniquK, 
Pertulerit. 

^  The  murder  of  Iphitus  is  related  in  this  i)lay,  v.  270-275. 

*  Ceyx,  the  king  of  Trachis 


45—75.]  TRACHINLE.  205 

other  five,  without  sending  any  tidings ;  and  tliere  must  be 
some  dreadful  niislbrtuiie.  Of  this  purport  he  left  me,  at  his 
departure,  a  Avriting,  which  I  often  pray  to  the  gods  to  have 
received  unaccompanied  by  calamity. 

Attendant.  My  mistress,  Deianira,  I  have  already  seen 
you  bewailing  the  departure  of  Hercules  with  many  weeping 
laments ;  and  now  if  it  be  right  to  admonish  the  free-born  with 
the  opinions  of  a  slave,  it  behooves  even  me  this  much  to  sug- 
gest. How,  indeed,  do  you  abound  with  so  many  children, 
yet  do  not  send  some  one  in  search  of  your  husband,  and  espe- 
cially Hyllus,  whom  it  becomes  to  show  if  he  bears  any  regard 
for  his  father's  prosperity?  But  here  he  himself,  near  at 
hand,  is  bounding  toward  the  house  with  vigorous  step  ;  so 
that,  if  I  seem  to  you  to  give  seasonable  advice,  it  is  in  your 
power  to  avail  yourself  of  the  presence  of  the  youth  and  of  my 
v/ords. 

Dei.  O  child,  O  my  son,  even  from  the  ignobly-born  noble 
words  proceed  ;  for  this  woman,  indeed,  is  a  slave,  but  she  has 
spoken  no  slavish  speech. 

Hyllus.  Of  what  import?  Tell  me,  mother,  if  it  may  be 
told. 

Dei.  That  it  brings  reproach  on  you,  your  father  having 
been  so  long  abroad,  not  to  make  inquiry  where  he  is. 

Hyl.  But  I  know,  if  at  least  one  may  believe  reports. 

Dei.  And  v/here  on  earth  do  you  heai",  my  child,  that  he  is 
situated  ? 

Hyl.  They  say  that  for  the  by-past  year  he  has  labored 
through  its  long  period  in  bondage  to  a  Lydian  woman. ^ 

Dei.  One  may  therefore  hear  every  thing  if  he  submitted  to 
this.2 

Hyl.  But  he  is  released  from  this  at  least,  as  I  learn. 

Dei.  Where  now,  then,  living  or  dead,  is  he  reported  to  be  ? 

Hyl.  They  say  that  he  leads,  or  is  still  on  the  point  of  lead- 
ing, an  expedition  against  the  land  of  Eubosa  and  the  city  of 
Eurytus. 

^  Omphale. 

^  Qussri  potest,  cur  tantopere  Deianira  indignstur  Omphalae  Herculem 
servire  qui  antea  per  tot  annos  Eurystheo  servilera  operam  prsestiterat. 
Mihi  videntur  duse  hujus  inditrnationis  causae  fuisse,  priraa.  quod  foemmas, 
altera  vero  quod  Lydss,  i.  c,  barbarae,  in  eervitutem  addictus  fuerat. — • 
Musgrave. 


20G  TRACHINL^.  [7G— 1C6 

Dei.  Ivnovv'  you,  then,  my  son,  liow  lie  left  to  me  unerring 
predictions  concerning  this  land  ? 

Hyl.  Of  what  kind,  mother?  for  I  am  ignorant  of  the 
tale. 

Di:i.  That  he  is  either  about  to  bring  his  life  to  its  close,  or 
having  accomphshed  this  labor,  for  the  future  to  spend  the  re- 
mainder of  his  days  in  a  tranquil  existence.  AVill  you  not, 
then,  my  son,  go  to  aid  him,  depending  on  this  crisis,  since  we 
arc  either  preserved,  if  he  preserve  his  life,  or  at  the  same  time 
depart  and  fall  if  your  fiither  perish?^ 

Hyl.  But  I  go,  oh  mother !  and  if  I  had  known  the  annun- 
ciation of  these  oracles,  even  formerly  I  would  have  been  pres- 
ent. But  the  usual  fortune  of  my  father  does  not  permit  us  to 
feel  foreboding  fear,  nor  to  be  overmuch  dismayed.^  But  now, 
since  I  do  know  them,  I  will  in  no  respect  fail  to  learn  the 
whole  truth  concerning  these  matters. 

Dei.  Go  now,  my  son  ;  for  even  he  that  is  late  in  doing 
well,  yet,  when  he  learns  his  duty,  procures  gain. 

Ciioiius.  Whom  spangled^  I'igkfj  'is  she  dies  away,  brings 
forth,  and  again  lulls  to  sleep,  the  sun,*  the  blazing  sun,  I 
implore  to  tell  me  of  Alcmena's  son,  v/here,  where  at  all  he 
dwells,  oh  thou  that  beamest  with  refulgent  splendors,  wheth- 
er on  some  ocean  isthmus,  or  resting  on  either  continent  ;^ 
tell  me,  oh  thou,  who  in  sight  surpassest !  For  I  learn  that 
Deianira,  for  whom  rivals  strove,  ever  with  longing  thoughts, 
like  some  Avretched  bird,  refuses  to  lull  to  rest  the  regret  of 

^  See  Hermann  and  Wunder. — B. 

^  The  clauses  vvv  6'  6  ^vvtiOt]^  and  vvv  6%  of  ^vvitj/j.'  have  been  trans- 
posed by  Brunck,  who  reads  d/.?.'  6  ^vvtjOtjc,  the  corruption  arising  from 
the  sijiiilarity  in  the  line  just  above.  Wunder  agrees  in  transposing  the 
passage,  but  Hermann  would  throw  out  the  second  clause  altogelher. 
Brunck  appears  to  be  nearest  the  truth. — B. 

^  Cf.  ^Esch.  Prom.  24,  ;)  TroiiciAeifiuv  vv^.  Apul.  de  Deo  Socr.,  p.  44, 
ed.  Elm.  "pictis  noctibus.'' — B. 

*  'A/.Tlo,  cv  yap  d?/  Tiucrnv  Irrl  ;j'^c)ra  ical  Kara  ttovtov 

alOcpo^  tK  dirjg  Kara6tpKeai  uktIv£ggl, 

VTj/LtEprt(JC  fJ-Oi   tVLGnC,   (plloV   Tt'KOr   ti   TTOV  UTTOTTa^. 

Homer.  Hymn,  in  Cer.  v.  G9. 
^  It  is  rather  absurd  to  suppose  that  Hercules  could  be  on  the  two 
continents  at  the  same  moment.  Musgrave,  after  rejjrehending  the  inac- 
curacy of  the  expression,  makes  a  very  good-natured  excuse  for  it  in  these 
words  :  "  Sod  nimis  severi  sumus,  ncc  tanta  loquendi  subtilitas  a  poiita 
sxijTPnda." 


107—150.]  trachiali:.  207 

her  tearless^  eyes ;  but  clierisbiiig  n,  terror  ever  present  to  her 
mind,  on  account  of  tlie  journey  of  lier  lord,  pines  away  on  her 
widowed  couch  of  care,^  in  expectation  of  an  evil  and  wretched 
tloom.  For  as  one  may  behold  manv  1  allows  urged  by  the 
blasts  of  the  unwearied  north  or  south  advancing,  and  speed- 
ing in  succession  over  the  wide  ocean — thus  life's  many  cai'es 
nurse  the  infancy  and  rear  the  manhood  of  the  Theban  hero, 
like  waves  on  the  Cretan  main  ;  but  some  god  ever  preserves 
him  in  safety  from  the  mansions  of  Pluto.  On  account  of 
Avhich  reprehending  you,  I  v>-ill  suggest  what  is  pleasing  in- 
deed, but  opposite  to  your  thoughts.  For  I  say  that  you 
ouaht  not  to  cast  awav  good  hones,  since  he  that  reigns  su- 
preme,  the  son  of  Saturn,  hath  not  allotted  all  things  to  mor- 
tals devoid  of  calamity ;  but  sorrow  and  joy  return  in  course 
to  all,  like  the  devolving  paths  of  the  Bear.  For  neither  does 
spangled  night  remain  to  mortals,  nor  the  fates,  nor  wealth ; 
but  in  a  moment  they  are  gone ;  and  to  the  same  mortal  suc- 
ceed joy  and  the  loss  of  joy.  Yvlierefore  I  bid  you,  my  queen, 
in  hope  ever  to  retain  these  reflections ;  since  who  hath  seen 
Jove  thus  devoid  of  care  for  his  children  ? 

Dei.  Plaving  learned,  as  may  be  conjectured,  my  sufferings, 
you  are  present ;  but  hov\^  I  pine  in  spirit,  may  you  never 
learn  by  experience.  Xow  you  are  ignorant  of  its  woe ;  for 
youth  is  pastured  in  such  vales  of  its  own  ;^  and  neither  does 
the  heat  of  heaven,  nor  showers,  nor  any  gale  disturb  it ;  but 
it  builds  up  with  pleasures  a  life  of  ease,  until  one  be  called  a 
wife  instead  of  a  virgin,  and  receive  her  sliare  of  anxiety  in 
the  hours  of  nioht,  either  fearing  for  her  husband  or  her  chil- 
dron.  Then  might  any  woman  perceive,  considering  her 
ovrn  condition,  by  what  evils  I  am  weighed  down.  Many 
8ufferinfi\s  indeed  then  have  I  lamented;  but  one  such  cs  I 
have  never  before  [lamented]  will  I  immediately  disclose. 
For  when  the  royal  Hercules  departed  on  his  last  journey  from 

^  Sdg  Kermann,   eivd^eiv  tov  rroBov  tQv  8?.e6up(jv,   ucre   yiyvecGat 

J  \        >    V     -  T,  I.I  t       / 

av:  i  (lOaKpvra. — 15. 

^  Ovid,  Epist.  i.  7,  "  Non  ego  deserto  jacuisscm  frigida  lecto  :  Nee  quc- 
rerer  tardos  ire  reiicta  dies.  Quando  ego  non  tiniui  graviora  pericula 
vcris  ]  Res  est  soUiciti  plena  timoris  amor."  ix.  35,  "  Ipsa  domo  vidua 
votis  opcrata  pudicis  Torqueor,  infesto  ne  vir  ab  hoste  cadat." — B. 

^  X<^poi<jLv  avTov.  Hermann  would  read  x^^potg  Iv'  uvtov  ;  Wunder, 
ycjpoLQ  iv'  (Ivah-ovToc  ov  Od/.TOQ  dcov,  a  bold  and  masterly  coniectur*?.  well 
(lescrvinp-  to  be  adopted. — B 


208  TRACHINLE.  [157—190 

home;  then  he  leaves  in  the  palace  an  ancient  tablet,  iiiscribe() 
with  mandates,  which  before,  though  going  forth  to  many 
combats,  he  never  had  the  heart  to  disclose  to  me  ;  but  he 
went,  as  about  to  achieve  some  feat,  and  not  to  fall.  Ikit  now, 
as  though  he  were  no  more,  he  told  me  that  it  was  fitting  I 
should  take  my  marriage  portion,  and  told  me  what  share  of 
paternal  proj)erty  he  awarded  to  be  divided  to  his  children  ; 
having  appointed  that,  when  he  should  be  gone  a  year  and 
three  months  from  the  country,  it  Avas  either  fated  he  should 
die  in  this  time,  or,  escaping  the  close  of  its  period,  should 
live  for  the  future  in  a  life  free  from  pain.  Such  things,  he 
said,  were  decreed  for  consummation  by  the  gods  concerning 
the  labors  of  Hercules,  as  the  ancient  beech-tree  at  Dodona 
had  formerly  announced  by  the  lips  of  the  tAvin  doves.  ^  And 
the  certainty  of  these  predictions  coincides  with  the  present 
time,  so  that  it  is  necessary  they  should  be  accompHshed. 
Thus,  my  friends,  while  sweetly  slumbering,  I  start  from  re- 
pose, agitated  with  terror,  lest  it  be  fated  that  I  should  remain 
bereft  of  the  best  of  all  men. 

Cii.  Speak  now  words  of  good  omen,  since  I  see  some  mes' 
senger  advancing,  crowned  with  garlands  on  account  of  hi." 
tidings.  2 

Messenger.  Deianira,  my  queen,  I,  first  of  messengers,  will 
release  you  from  your  apprehensions ;  for,  knoAv  that  the  son 
of  Alcmena  is  living,  and  is  victorious,  and,  the  battle  over,  is 
brinjyin";  its  first-fruits  to  the  jrods  of  his  countrv. 

Dei.  What  Avords  are  these,  old  man,  that  you  have  spoken 
to  me  *? 

Mess.  That  quickly  to  thy  palace  shall  come  thy  much-de- 
sired lord,  returning  Avith  his  triumj^hant  poAA'ers. 

Dei.  And  from  Avhat  citizen  or  stranger  did  you  learn  the 
tidings  you  tell  ? 

Mess.  The  herald  Lichas,  his  attendant,  is  proclaiming 
these  things  to  numl)crs  in  the  ox-grazing  field.  Hearing 
them  from   him,  I  rushed  aAvay,  in  order  tliat,  having  first 

^  Those  who  wish  for  an  account  of  tlic  miraculous  doves  of  Dodona 
may  consult  Herodotus,  lib.  ii.  55,  wlierc  they  will  find  an  explanation 
scarcely  less  absurd  than  the  orifrinal  fable.  Eustathius  and  the  scholiast 
both  offer  their  conjectures  on  the  point,  without  considering  it  at  all  re- 
quisite to  be  within  the  verrre  of  probability. 

2  Cf  (Ed.  Tyr.  82  sq.— 13. 


191—224.]  TRACHINLE  209 

related  them  to  you,  I  might  gain  something  at  your  hands, 
and  acquire  favor.  ^ 

Dei.  Ijut  how,  if  well  he  speed,  is  he  himself  absent  1 

Mess.  Because,  O  lady,  he  encounters  some  difficulty ;  for 
all  the  Mclian  people,  standing  round  him  in  a  circle,  is  ques- 
tioning him  ;  nor  is  it  in  his  power  to  advance  farther.  Each 
wishing  to  learn  fully  the  welcome  news,  will  not  let  him  go 
till  ho  have  heard  to  his  satisfaction.  Thus  he,  unwiUing, 
'■is  present  with  the  willing  ;  but  you  will  soon  see  him  ap- 
pear, 

Dei.  O  Jove !  who  presidest  over  the  uncultured^  mead  of 
^ta,  thou  hast  bestowed  on  us,  though  late,  the  joy.  Raise 
your  acclaim,  ye  maids,  both  ye  within  the  house,  and  ye  with- 
out the  court,  since  we  now  enjoy  the  eye  of  happy  rumor 
beaming  unexpectedly  upon  me. 

Cii.  Burst  forth  through  the  palaces,  with  the  shouts  of  joy 
around  your  hearths,  whoever  of  you  is  a  bridegroom, ^  and 
let  the  mingled  shouts  of  the  youths  ascend  to  Apollo,  our 
champion,  the  Lord  of  the  graceful  quiver ;  and  at  the  same 
time  celebrate,  ye  virgins,  Fjean,  l^a^an ;  and  loudly  cele- 
brate his  sister  Diana  Ortygia,  the  huntress  of  the  stag,  the 
goddess  with  her  double  torch,^  and  her  attendant  nymphs.  I 
am  transported ;  nor  will  I  disclaim  the  flute,  oh  sovereign  of 
my  soul !  Lo  !  the  thyrsus  rouses  me  up  ;  lo  !  it  inspires  me, 
now  hurrying  my  steps  into  the  rivalry  of  the  Bacchic  vota- 
ries.'' lo !  lo !  Pa^an !  Behold,  behold,  dear  mistress,  you 
may  nov/  see  these  things  clearly  before  your  face. 

^  The  messenger  is  at  all  events  abundantly  candid  in  confessing  his 
scurvy  motive. 

-  Uncultured,  in  consequence  of  its  being  set  apart  and  consecrated  to 
the  god.  The  epithet  uTOfiov  may  also  be  translated  "  undevastated," 
which  bears  in  a  similar  way  a  reference  to  its  sanctity,  as  being  spared, 
on  that  account,  by  the  enemy,  in  their  hostile  incursions. — Tr.  Cf. 
Eurip.  Hipp.  73,    l^  uKTjpuTov  /.etfiiovog. — B. 

^  I  am  little  satisfied  with  Dindorf  s  readings  or  punctuation,  but  have 
followed  them  closely,  for  the  convenience  of  the  scholar,  who  can  alter 
accordincT  to  taste. — B. 

*  Diana  was  represented  in  the  ancient  mysteries  as  bearmg  a  torch  m 
each  hand.  The  epithet  dfKpt-vpov  is  generally  supposed  to  have  a  refer- 
ence to  these  insignia ;  but  it  may  also  be  taken  as  descriptive  of  the 
splendor  and  brightness  of  the  goddess,  in  her  character  of  Luna. 

^  BaKx'iav  uiiilTiav  noto  usu  accusativi  additum  est,  convcrtens  me  ad 
(zmulundmn  Bacchus. — Herm. 


210  TRACHINL^  [225—255. 

Dei.  I  see,  dear  women ;  nor  has  the  watchfulness  of  my 
eyes  deceived  me  so  as  not  to  see  this  band  :  and  I  bid  the 
herald  hail,  though  late  aj^pearing,  if  the  tidings  he  brings  be 
of  joy. 

LiciiAS.  But  well  indeed  have  we  come,  and  well,  oh 
lady,  are  we  hailed  according  to  the  merit  of  our  actions, ^ 
for  it  needs  must  that  a  man  who  prospers  should  gain  good 
words. 

Dei.  O  dearest  of  men,  tell  me  first,  what  I  most  desire,  if  I 
shall  embrace  Hercules  alive  ? 

Li.  I  left  him  both  in  strength  and  life,  blooming  in  health, 
and  not  oppressed  with  disease. 

Dei.  Where  ?  in  a  native  or  a  foreign  soil  ?     Speak. 

Li.  There  is  a  certain  promontory  of  Euboca,  where  he  is 
marking  out  altars,  and  sacrificing  the  fruits  of  his  victories  to 
Cena;an-  Jove. 

Dei.  In  performance  of  a  vow?  or  on  the  injunction  of 
some  oracle? 

Li.  a  vow — when  he  took  the  country  of  these  women  you 
see  before  you,  the  devastated  prey  of  his  spear. 

Dei.  But  who,  by  the  gods,  are  these  ?  and  whose  are  they  ? 
for  they  arc  the  objects  of  pity,  if  their  misfortunes  do  not  de- 
ceive me.  3 

Li.  These,  when  he  destroyed  the  city  of  Eurytus,  he  se- 
lected a  chosen  possession  for  himself  and  the  gods. 

Dei.  Was  it  against  this  city  that  he  was  gone  this  vast  and 
countless  number  of  days. 

Li.  Ko  ;  but  for  the  principal  part  of  the  time  he  was 
detained  in  Lydia,  as  he  himself  says,  not  free,  but  sold. 
But  there  ought  not,  oh  lady,  to  be  any  displeasure  at  a  cir- 
cumstance of  Avhich  Jove  mnj  appear  to  have  been  the  cause. 
For  he,  as  he  owns  himself,  being  sold  to  Omphale,  a  bar- 
barian, completed  a  year  in  her  service ;  and  he  was  thus 
stung  by  having  this  disgrace   attached  to  him,  that,  laying 

'  Verba  kqt'  (pyov  icr/jaiv  ambijriia  sunt.  Nam  aut  significant  Kara 
To  tpyov,  o  KUiTeoai.,  pro  7uincio  acccplo,  aut  Kara  to  tpyov,  b  ic£KT7J/j.eOa 
quae  est  cxpugnatio  .^i^chalicc. — Herm. 

^  The  name  is  derived  from  Cenacum,  a  promontory  of  Euboca,  wliich 
wan  consecrated  to  this  god. 

^  DignoD  enim  sunt  miserationc,  si  do  calaniitatibus  caruni  rcctc  judico. 
— Scliacfcr. 


5 


25G— 293.]  TRACHINLf].  211 

an  oath  on  liimsGlf,  he  swore  that  he  v>'oiild  yet  cnshive,  along 
with  his  wife  and  children,  the  man  wlio  brought  this  suf- 
fering home  to  him.  ISTor  did  he  belie  his  word  ;  but  when 
lie  vv'as  puritied/  taking  a  foreign  host,  he  goes  to  the  city  of 
Eurytus ;  for  he  accused  him  alone  of  mortals  of  being  the 
author  of  this  evil ;  who,  when  he  came  a  guest  to  his  house 
being  of  old  his  friend,  had  much  reviled  him  with  word 
and  much  with  the  malignity  of  his  mind,  saying  that  though 
he  bore  in  his  hands  the  inevitable  arrows,  he  was  inferior 
to  his  children  in  the  trial  of  archerv ;  and  he  savs  that  he, 
a  slave,  ought  to  be  treated  with  blows  by  a  freeman ;  and 
wh.en  he  was  heated  with  wine  at  the  banquet,  he  drove  him 
out.  l>eing  enraged  at  this  treatment,  when  Iphitus'  after- 
ward came  to  the  Tyrinthian  hill,  following  the  traces  of  some 
mares  that  had  left  his  pastures,  then,  while  he  had  his  eye 
turned  in  one  way,  and  liis  mind  in  another,  he  hurled  him 
down  from  the  summit  of  the  towering  steep.-^  But  Jove,  the 
Oivmnian  kinir,  father  of  all,  bciuG;  enrao-ed  on  account  of  this 
deed,  sent  him  thence  in  slavery,  nor  brooked  that  he  should 
slay  Iphitus,  alone  of  men,  by  guile.  For  had  he  openly  as- 
sailed him,  Jove  would  have  forgiven  him  for  justly  vanquish- 
ing his  opponent ;  for  the  gods  do  not  love  injustice.  But 
they  vvdio  wantonly  boasted  with  reviling  tongue,  are  all  the 
inhabitants  of  the  shades,  and  their  city  is  caj)iive.  But  these 
virgins,  whom  you  behold,  having  met  with  an  unenviable  life, 
from  an  high  estate,  come  to  you ;  for  thus  at  least  your  hus- 
band enjoined,  and  I,  being  faithful  to  him,  execute  his  com- 
mand. And  when  he  shall  have  offered  the  holy  sacrifices  to 
his  father  Jove  for  the  capture  of  the  city,  expect  him  to  come 
himself;  for  this,  of  all  a  long  tale  of  happy  tidings,  is  the 
sweetest  word  to  hear. 

Cii.  Now,  O  queen,  manifest  joy  accrues  to  you,  both  from 
what  is  present,  and  from  what  you  have  learned  by  this 
speech. 

Dei.  And  how  should  I  not,  when  I  hear  of  these  pros- 

^  When  he  had  made  expiation  for  the  murder  of  Iphitus,  by  coirsplet- 
incT  hif>  year  of  bondao-e. 

^  One  of  the  four  sons  of  Eurytus. 

^  This  was  a  very  blackguard  piece  of  business  on  the  part  of  Hercules. 
It  argues  bad  taste  in  the  poet  to  introduce  a  story  which  tends  so  much 
to  destroy  our  favorable  impressions  of  his  hero. 


212  TRACHINLE.  1291—323 

pcrous  fortunes  of  my  liusband,  rejoice  'svith  all  the  just  joy  of 
my  soul  ?  There  is  strong  necessity  tliat  my  joy  should  keep 
pace  with  his  success.  Yet  still  fear  dwells  in  those  Avho  con- 
sider things  aright/  lest  he,  Avho  is  in  prosperity,  should  at 
some  moment  stumble  in  his  course,  I'or  a  powerful  senti- 
ment of  compassion,  my  friends,  has  entered  my  bosom  as  I 
look  on  these  ill-starred  virsins,  wanderino;  in  the  land  of 
strangers,  afar  from  their  homes,  and  bereft  of  their  fathers, 
Vv'ho  in  former  days,  perchance,  were  the  offspring  of  high> 
born  chiefs,  but  who  now  lead  the  life  of  slaves.  O  Jo\e, 
averter  of  my  ills,  may  I  never  at  any  time  see  thee  thus  ad- 
vancing against  my  children,  nor,  if  thou  wilt  do  auglit,  while 
I  at  least  am  yet  alive  !  Thus  am  I  moved  by  fear,  beholding 
these  captives.  O  unhappy  in  thy  lot,  who  of  youthful  virgins 
art  thou  ?  unmarried  or  a  mother  ?  Yet,  by  your  appearance, 
you  arc  unacquainted  wdth  all  this,  but  art  one  of  noble  birth. 
Lichas,  of  Vv-hom  of  mortals  is  tlris  stranger  the  daughter? 
Yv'ho  was  the  mother  that  bore  her  ?  ^Vho  was  the  father  that 
begot  her?  Declare  it.  For  I  on  beholding  her,  have  pitied 
her  the  most  of  these,  inasmuch  as  she  alone  knows  to  feel  for 
her  situation. 2 

Li.  What  do  I  know^?  Why  should  you  ask  me?  Per- 
haps the  offspring  of  parents  who  there  are  not  among  the 
meanest. 

Dei.  Is  she  of  the  royal  family  ?  Some  offspring  of  Eu- 
rytus. 

Li.  I  know  not ;  for  I  did  not  make  any  great  inquiries. 

Dei.  Nor  have  you  learned  her  name  from  some  one  of  the 
companions  of  her  way  ? 

Li.  By  no  means.     I  performed  my  task  in  silence. 

Dei.  But  do  you,  unhappy  maid,  speak  to  me  yourself; 
since  it  is  a  sort  of  misfortune  not  to  know  you,  at  least  wdio 
you  are. 

Li.   She  Avill  not  now  utter  a  word  more  than  formerly, 

^  Tolaiv  ev  cKoirovfievotc  recte  vertit  Brunckius  :  "  Tanicn  incst  his 
aliquis  metus,  si  rem  rite  expcndas."  Quippc  intclligitur  prospcra  Her- 
cuiis  fortuna,  ncquc,  ut  Ha?pfnerus  ct  Billerbckius  sibi  pcrsuascrant,  ad 
pucllas  adstantcs  pcrtinet. — Erfurdt. 

-  Quod  prudentia3  specimen  ediderit  lolc,  ex  contcxtu  non  patet ; 
Hheraquc  adco  conjectura  lectori  rclinquitur,  utrum  lachrymis  prjEscntis 
mail  sensum  tcstata  sit,  an  vultu  scrcno  ct  placido  aninii  nia^iiitudinem 
ostenderit. — Musgravc. 


323—318. J  TRACHINLE.  213 

she  M'ho  has  not  yet  spoken  much  or  little,^  but,  ever  de- 
ploring the  weight  of  her  calamity,  the  wretched  maid  keeps 
sliodding  tears  from  tlie  time  that  she  left  her  wind-swept^ 
country.  This  circumstance  is  unfortunate  indeed,  for  her- 
self at  least,  but  it  deserves  pardon. 

Dei.  Let  her  therefore  be  indulged,  and  let  her  go  within 
thus  as  is  most  agreeable  to  her,  nor,  in  addition  to  lier  pres- 
ent evils,  let  her  receive  from  me  at  least  a  double  pain;  for 
that  which  she  already  feels  is  enough.  And  now  let  us  all 
go  home,  that  you  at  least  may  hasten  where  you  please,  and 
I  may  put  things  within  in  proper  order.  ' 

Mess.  Here,  at  any  rate,  lirst  wait  for  a  little  while,  in  order 
that  you  may  learn  apart  from  these,  whom  at  least  you  con- 
duct within  ;  and  of  what  you  have  heard  nothing  may  be  fully 
made  acquainted,  too,  w'ith  all  that  is  j^roper  to  know ;  for  I 
have  the  full  inteliioence  of  these  things. 

Dei.  What  is  it '?     Why  do  you  stay  my  steps  1^ 

Mess.  Standing  still,  listen  :  for  neither  did  you  formerly* 
hear  my  words  in  vain,  nor  do  I  think  you  shall  now. 

Dei.  Whether,  in  truth,  shall  I  call  those  persons  back 
again,  or  do  you  wish  to  speak  to  these  virgins  and  to 
me  ? 

Mess.  To  you  and  these  there  is  no  restrictions,  but  suffer 
the  others  to  remain  away. 

Dei.  And  in  fact  they  arc  gone,  and  let  your  news  be 
signitled. 

Mess.  This  man  utters  nothing  of  what  he  has  just  spoken 
according  to  the  strictness  of  truth  ;  but  either  now  he  is  false, 
or  formerly  was  present  no  true  messenger. 

^  Exspcctabat  Deianira,  responsurani  esse  lolen.  At  ilia  tacet.  Id 
videns  Lichas  dicit  :  ovr'  upa  ovdev  dtoicreL  y?MCGav  l^  laov  rC)  ye  7zp6c~ 
Ocv  ;rp6iv  •  fii^^il'  ergo  differ ct  ah  sc  ipsa  loqiccndo  {i.  c,  semper  eadera 
erit,  constanter  servando  silcnti(>)^c:^?ic  tit  antca  fecit. — licnn. 

^  "  Aajveixov,  vcrdis  perjiatam,  i.  c.,  desertam  ut  bene  interpretatur 
Sclioliastes." — Muscravc.  From  this  v."c  must  venture  to  dissent.  The 
native  city  of  lole  is  mentioned,  in  another  place,  as  "  the  loKy"  ^T^chalia, 
which  v/iil  sufliciently  account  for  its  being  exposed  to  a  little  rough 
weather,  without  having  recourse  to  the  "  interprctatio"  of  the  scholiast, 
or  Musgrave,  his  aj;proving  ally. 

^  But  sec  liiermann  and  Vv'under. — 13. 

*  This  messenger  is  the  same  ofiiciotis  person  who  came  before  to  an- 
nounce the'arrival  of  Lichas. 


214  TRACHINL^.  [349— 3S4. 

Dei.  AVhat  say  you  ?  Clearly  deliver  me  all  that  you  have 
in  your  iniiici ;  for,  as  to  what  you  have  spoken,  ignorance 
possesses  me. 

Mess.  I  heard  this  man  saying,  while  m.any  Avitnesse?>  were 
present,  that,  for  the  sake  of  this  virgin,  Hercules  both  de- 
stroyed Eurytus  and  lofty-towered  ^chalia ;  and  that  Love 
alone  of  the  gods  had  moved  him  to  raise  his  spear  in  this 
war ;  not  his  adventures  in  Lydia,  nor  his  service  of  toil  with 
Omphale,  nor  the  headlong  death  of  Iphitus ;  [but  love] 
which^  he  now  setting  aside,  contradicts  his  former  statement. 
But  when  he  did  not  persuade  the  father  to  give  up  his 
daughter  that  he  might  enjoy  her  secret  embraces,  having 
devised  some  slight  ground  of  complaint  and  cjuarrcl,  lie  leads 
an  expedition  against  the  country  of  this  damsel,  in  which  he 
said  that  Eurytus  was  lord  of  the  throne ;  and  he  slays  the 
king  her  father,  and  lias  sacked  the  city.  And  now  he  comes, 
O  lady,  as  you  see,  sending  her  to  this  palace,  not  without 
design,  nor  as  a  slave ;  expect  not  this :  nor  is  it  likely,  since 
he  hath  been  inflamed  wdth  desire.  It  seemed  therefore  good 
to  me,  O  cjueen,  to  disclose  to  you  every  thing  wdiich  I  have 
chanced  to  learn  from  the  herald:  and  many  in  the  middle 
of  the  Trachinian  forum  heard  tliis  at  tlie  same  time  equally 
with  myself,  so  as  to  bring  it  home  to  him.  But  if  I  do  not 
say  what  is  agreeable,  I  am  sorry  ;  yet  still  I  have  spoken  the 
truth. 

Dei.  All  unhappy  me  !  in  v.diat  circumstances  am  I  placed  ? 
AYhat  secret  bane  have  I  received  under  my  roof?  O  Avretch- 
ed  woman  that  I  am  !  Is  she  then  of  an  obscure  name,  as  ho. 
that  conducted  her  swore  ? 

Mess.  Surely  is  she  most  glorious  both  in  appearance  and 
birth,-  being  by  birth  the  daughter  of  Eurytus,  she  was  for- 
merly called  lole,  vrhose  parents  he  could  not  tell,  liaving,  for- 
sooth, made  no  inquiry. 

Cii.  Let  not  all  the  wicked  perish,  but  him  whoever  prac- 
tices base  fraud  unworthy  of  his  character.^ 

^  vv,  sell.  tIv  Ipura.  Still,  I  can  not  help  thinking  that  this  verse 
.should  be  placed  immediately  after  v.  355.  Peiliaps  something  is  want- 
ing.— B. 

^  This  verse  is  assigned  by  all  modern  editors  to  the  Mcsi?cngcr,  a'.id 
not  connected  with  Dcianira's  words. — 13. 

'•'  The  Chorus  evidently  utter  this  malediction  to  show  their  indignation 


3S5— 414.]  TRACHINLE.  215 

Dei.  VVlial,  yc  women,  ought  to  be  clone  ?  for  I  am  driyeu 
out  of  my  mind  by  this  present  intcUigencc. 

Ch.  Go  and  interrogate  the  man,  since  he  will  quickly 
tell  the  truth,  if  you  appear  inclined  to  question  him  by 
force. 

Dei.  Yrcil,  I  go;  for  you  do  not  advise  Avitliout  judg- 
ment. 

Cii.  Init  shall  we  remain  ?  or  what  is  it  proper  to  do  ? 

Dei.  Remain ;  since  this  man,  not  summoned  by  my  mes- 
sengers, but  of  his  own  accord,  is  passing  out  of  the  liouse. 

Li,  AVhat  is  it  fitting,  O  lady,  that  I,  returning,  should 
say  to  Hercules?     Inform  me,  since,  as  you  see,  I  am  go- 

Dei.  Do  you,  thus  coming  after  so  long  a  time,  so  quickly 
depart  before  we  renew  our  conversation  ? 

Li.  If  you  wish  to  make  any  inquiry,  I  am  present. 

Dei.  Do  you  deal  in  the  honesty  of  truth  ? 

Li.  Great  Jove  be  my  witness,  at  least  in  whatever  I 
know. 

Dei.  "Who,  in  truth,  is  the  woman  whom  you  come  con- 
ducting ? 

Li.  a  Avoman  of  Euboea ;  but  from  whom  she  is  sprung  I 
can  not  tell. 

Mess.  Ho  you,  look  this  way :  to  whom  do  you  think  you 
speak  ? 

Li.  And  you,  for  what  purpose  do  you  ask  m.e  this  ques- 
tion '? 

Mess.  Dare  to  ansv/er,  if  you  are  wise,  what  I  ask  you. 

Li.  To  Deianira  the  queen,  daughter  of  Q^neus,  and  wife 
of  Hercules  [if  my  sight  deceive  me  not],  and  my  mistress. 

jMess.  This  v/as  the  very  thing  I  sought  to  learn  from  you. 
Do  you  acknowledge  that  this  is  your  mistress? 

Li.  Yes  ;  for  she  is  so  with  just  right. 

Mess.  What  then?  What  punishment  do  you  consider 
yourself  worthy  to  suffer  if  you  be  found  untrue  to  her  ? 

Li.  How  untrue?     What  wiles  are  you  attempting? 

Mess.  None :  you,  however,  are  doing  this  in  a  very  great 
degree. 

Li.  I  go ;  and  I  was  a  fool  to  listen  so  long  to  you. 

at  the  duplicity  of  Lichas,  though  they  justly  take  the  opportunity  cf 
having  a  slap  at  the  master  while  they  abuse  the  man. 


21G  TRACHINLE.  [415- 


r,» 


Mess.  Not  at  least  before  being  shortly  examiiied  you  shall 


make  answer, 


Li.  Speak,  if  you  wish,  any  thing ;  for  you  are  not  much  in- 
clined to  silence. 
^     Mess.  Do  you  know  the  captive  whom  you  have  brought  to 
this  place? 

Li.  I  say  I  do,  but  why  do  you  inquire  1 

Mess.  Did  you  not  say  that  you  v/ere  conducting  lole,  the 
daughter  of  Eurytus,  her  whom  you  now  look  upon  as  un- 
known ? 

Li.  Among  what  sort  of  men?  who,  and  whence  coming, 
will  bear  witness  to  you  that  present  he  heard  these  words 
from  me? 

Mess.  Among  many  of  the  citizens.  A  great  crowd  in  the 
middle  of  the  Trachinian  forum  heard,  full  sure,  these  w^ords 
from  thy  mouth. 

Li.  Very  true :  I  said  that  I  heard  this  at  least ;  but  it  is 
not  the  same  thing  to  state  one's  notion  and  to  maintain  an  as- 
sertion positively. 

Mess.  What  notion  ?  Did  not  you,  speaking  under  an  oath, 
declare  that  you  brought  this  damsel  as  a  wife  for  Hercu- 
les ? 

Li.  I  talk  of  a  wife !  Tell  me,  my  dear  mistress,  by  the 
gods,  who  in  the  world  is  this  stranger  ? 

Mess.  One  who  present  heard  you  assert  that  all  the  city 
was  subdued  througrh  love  of  this  woman,  and  that  the  Lydian 
dame  was  not  the  cause  of  its  destruction,  but  the  love  of  lole 
burstino;  forth. ^ 

Li.  Let  this  man,  O  queen,  begone ;  for  to  babble  with  a 
madman  is  not  the  part  of  the  wise. 

Dei.  Do  not,  by  Jove,  who  rolls  his  thunders  along  ^ta's 
lofty  forest,  falsify  thy  tale ;  for  thou  wilt  not  tell  it  to  a  v.om- 
an  of  a  base  spirit,  nor  one  who  does  not  know  the  disposition 
of  men,  that  it  is  not  by  nature  formed  to  t*ake  pleasure  al- 
ways in  the  same  things.  Yv^hoever  indeed  resists  love,  like 
a  pugilist,  hand  to  hand,  is  unwise.  For  love  rules  even  the 
gods  as  he  pleases,  and  myself  indeed ;  and  why  not  another, 
such,  at  any  rate,  as  me  ?     So  tliat  if  I  blame  my  husband, 

'  Musgrave  proposes,  in  place  of  (^avcig,  to  read  (T(paAeir,  frustratus, 
vvliich  would  be  a  decided  improvement,  were  there  any  good  authority 
for  its  adoption. 


410—185.]  trachi>;le.  217 

possessed  by  tliis  disease,  or  this  maiden,  tlic  cause  of  no  dis- 
Loiior  nor  evil  to  me,  I  am  mad  in  the  extreme.  It  is  not  so. 
Hut,  if  learning  it  from  him,  you  feign  this  tale,  you  leani  no 
good  instruction ;  and  if  you  thus  teach  yourself,  when  you 
wish  to  be  good,  you  shall  be  proved  to  be  bad.  But  speak 
the  whole  truth ;  since  for  a  freeman  to  be  called  a  liar  is  a 
disgraceful  stain  attaching  to  his  character.  Nor  is  it  possible 
that  you  should  escape  detection  ;  for  there  are  many  to  whom 
you  have  spoken  who  will  repeat  your  words  to  me.  And  if 
you  fear  indeed,  you  fear  foolishly  ;  since  not  to  know  it  might 
give  me  pain  ;  but  as  to  know  it,  where  is  the  harm  ?  lias  not 
Hercules,  one  husband,  already  married  several  other  wives  ?^ 
and  no  one  of  them  has  yet  heard  from  me,  at  least,  evil  word 
or  reproach  ;  nor  shall  she,  even  though  he  be  deeply  imbued 
v.'ith  her  love,  since  I  pitied  her  most  of  all  when  I  looked  on 
her,  because  her  beauty  has  been  the  ruin  of  her  life,  and  she, 
in  her  unhappy  fate,  has  unwillingly  brought  to  destruction 
and  slavery  her  native  land.  But  let  these  things  speed  on 
with  a  propitious  gale ;  and  I  desire  you  to  be  deceitful  to 
others,  but  never  be  guilty  of  falsehood  to  me.^ 

Cii.  Obey  this  lady,  recommending  what  is  good ;  and  you 
shall  afterward  not  blame  your  compliance,  and  shall  acquire 
my  gratitude. 

Li.  But,  O  my  dear  mistress,  since  I  perceive  3'ou,  a  mor- 
tal, have  thoughts  becoming  a  mortal,  and  are  not  void  of 
judgment,  I  ^^-ill  tell  you  the  whole  truth,  nor  conceal  aught. 
For  the  fact  is  so  as  he  asserts.  A  vehement  passion  for  this 
damsel  once  on  a  time  thrilled  through  Hercules,  and  on  her 
account  was  her  native  -^chalia,  in  wide  destruction,  laid  low 
by  the  spear.  And  these  circumstances,  for  it  is  proper  to 
tell  that  which  is  in  his  favor,  he  neither  bade  ma  keep  close, 
nor  ever  denied ;  but  I  myself,  O  queen,  fearing  lest  I  should 
pain  your  breast  by  these  tidings,  was  guilty  of  this  eiTor,  if 
in  ausht  vou  deem  it  an  error.  And  nov.',  since  you  know 
all  the  story,  both  for  his  sake  and  your  own  equally,  bear  this 

^  Sucli  were  Megara,  Auge,  and  Astydameia  ;  not  to  mention  the  fifty 
virgins,  whom,  to  crown  his  labors,  he  took  to  wife  in  one  night. 

^  This  curious  sentiment  may  be  compared  with  the  sentiment  of  an 
Irish  priest  to  his  refractory  son.  "O  Stephan,  Stephan,  how  often  have 
I  told  ve  that  telling  a  lie  to  me  was  quite  diiTcrcnt  from  tellino-  a  lie  to 
anv  one  else  !"     From  a  tale  by  Mrs.  S.  C.  Hall  in  the  "Amulet.'" — B. 

K 


218  TRACHLXLE.  [4SG— 518 

woman  with  patience,  and  resolve  to  confirm  the  words  which 
you  have  spoken  concerning  her.  For  he  who  bore  the  palm 
in  every  thing  else  by  his  valor,  is  altogether  worsted  by  his 
love  for  this  maid. 

Dei.  Ikit  thus  both  do  I  incline  so  as  to  do  these  tilings, 
and  I  Avill  not  bring  on  myself  a  voluntary  malady,  maintain- 
ing an  unequal  contest  with  the  gods.  But  let  us  go  ^^  ithin 
t'le  palace,  that  you  may  both  hear  the  answers  whicii  I  charge 
you  to  bear,  and  take  the  gifts  whicli  it  behooves  us  to  prepare, 
ia  suitable  return  to  his  sifts ;  for  it  were  not  riuht  that  vou, 
Avho  came  with  such  a,  great  train,  should  return  empty- 
handed. 

Chorl'S.  Venus  ever  bears  off  a  certain  mighty  pcAvcr  of 
victory ;  and  the  loves  of  the  gods  indeed  I  j^ass  over ;  nor  do 
I  sing  how  she  beguiled  the  son  of  Saturn  ;  nor  Pluto,  tlie  king 
of  night;  nor  Keptune  the  shaker  of  the  earth.  But  to  gain 
Deianira  as  a  bride,  certain  Vv'cil-practiced^  suitors  entered  the 
lists  respecting  her  hand,'^  and  went  through  the  strife  of  a 
battle,  rife  with  blows  and  wrestlins:.'^  The  one  indeed  was  a 
mighty  river,  in  the  quadruped  form  of  a  bull  Avith  towering 
horns,  Achelous  from  the  CKniadas ;  and  the  other  came  from 
Bacchic  Thebes,  liohtlv  wielding  his  bending^  bow,  and  shafts, 
juid  club,  the  son  of  Jove  ;  who  then,  burning  for  her  embrace, 
rushed-5  to  the  strugole.  And  the  beauteous  Yenus,^  alone 
present  in  the  midst,  sits  umpire  o'er  the  fray.  Then  Avas 
there  the  din  of  blows,  and  of  the  bow,  and  of  the  horns,  of 

^  (lfi<j)[yvot  =  du(pcd£^ioi,  Tvcptdt^cGi.     Liddell,  s.  v.  after  Ellendt. — B. 

^  "  Upo  -}u;iu)v.  Frigidissimum  forct  ante  nnptias,  nee  ttou  pro  7:epl 
nccipi  sinit  aut  versus  superior,  aut  Grtecorum  usus." — Musgrave.  "  I\pb 
ydfiuv  est  pro  pctiundis  nupliis.'^ — Erfurdt. — Tk.  I  have  followed  Er- 
furdt.— B. 

^  V.'under  has  well  seen  that  vra-^  Kurira  refers  to  the  '*  lucta." — B. 

*  I  have  rendered  TcaAlvrova  "  bendinfr,"  as  denolinjr  it  in  its  bent  or 
unbent  state  indifferently.  Sec  a  most  satisfactory  explanation  of  the 
double  meaning  of  the  v.ord  in  liddell  and  Scott's  Lexicon. — B. 

*  tlo7.7.£l(;,  usually  of  several  persons,  here  KaTaxp?jaTci:i2g  i~l  ih'o'iv, 
Schol.— B. 

^  "  Non  intelligendum  de  Doa  Paphia,  que  nequc  evAeicrpoc  dici  solet, 
r.eaue  coram  certamini  interfuisse  a  mvtholo.oris  traditur.  Est  if^itur 
iljrrpir  nihil  aliud  quani  civ!j,  connuliiim  sive  conJKx.  Totum  locum  sic 
intcrpretor  :  sola  autcr.i  paella  formosa  in  medio  asside?is  certamini  prcE- 
crat :  i.  c,  nulliu.s  iSpapevrov  jussu,  sed  puells3  dunta?:at  amore  incitati,  in 
arenam  dctxcndebant  *' — Musurave. 


519—554]  TRACHINLE.  219 


the  bull  mingled ;  then  were  there  the  locked  intcrtwiiiings 
ladder-wise,^  and  deadly  blows  of  the  forehead,  and  groans"-^ 
from  both.  And  the  soft  and  beauteous  nymph  eat  on  a  con- 
spicuous mound,  awaiting  him  who  shoidd  be  her  spouse 
[with  all  a  mother's  feelings  I  tell  the  tale'^],  and  her  eye  that 
iired  the  contest,  sorrowfully  expected  its  issue ;  and  away 
from  her  mother  ehe  straightway  departed,  like  some  young 
deserted  heifer. 

Dei.  While,  my  friends,  the  stranger  in-doors  is  conversing 
with  the  captive  virgins,  as  about  to  depart,  I  have,  in  the 
mean  time,  privily  come  without  the  gates  to  you,  partly  to 
bewail,  along  with  you,  the  sufferings  I  endure  ;  for  I  am 
of  opinion  that  I  have  received  this  captive  no  longer  a 
maiden,  but  a,  wife,  as  a  mariner  his  freight,  so  I  this  mer- 
chandise to  the  ruin  of  my  peace  ;  and  now  v/e  two,  beneath 
one  coverlet,  avv^ait  his  embrace.  Such  a  reward  has  Hercules, 
that  v/as  called  my  faithful  and  good  husband,  sent  me  for  my 
housekeeping:  for  so  Ion":  a  time.  But  I  indeed  do  not  know 
liow  to  be  angry  with  him,  so  oft  afflicted  with  this  disease ; 
and  yet  again  to  dwell  in  the  house  along  with  her,  sharing 
the  same  marriage,  v*diat  woman  could  endure  ?■=  For  I  sec 
lier  youth  indeed  advancing  to  ripeness,  and  mine  decaying ; 
from  tlie  former  of  which  the  eve  is  wont  to  cull  flowers,  but 
from  the  latter  to  turn  avray  the  steps.  This  therefore  I  dread, 
lest  Hercules  should  be  called  indeed  my  spouse,^  but  be  the 
husband  of  the  younger  wife.  I^ut  enough  ;  for  it  is  not  prop- 
er, as  I  said,  for  a  woman  possessed  of  prudence  to  give  way 
to  anger  ;  but  in  what  way  I  gain  a  release  from  my  troubles^ 

^  Hermann  cleverly  explains  this  species  of  wrcstii::-^,  in  v/hich  one 
turned  his  adversary  from  him,  and  mounted  on  his  back,  referring  to 
Ovid.  Met.  ix.  51  sqq. — B. 

^  "  Utovoc.  Cicero  hanc  vocem  in  Qussst.  Tusc.  II.  23,  illustrat :  pu- 
giles  vero,  ait,  quum  feriunt  adversarium,  in  jactandis  cffistibus  ing^cmis^ 
cunt,  non  quod  doleant  animovc  succumbant,  sed  quod  profundenda  voce 
omne  corpus  intcnditur  venitque  plaga  vehementior.  Idem  faciunt  athlc- 
ta?."" — Billerbeck. 

^  Or,  "  I  tell  the  tale  as  her  mother  told  it  to  me."' — Tn.  Wundcr  con- 
demns this  and  the  following  three  lines. — B. 

*     0  quam  cruentus  feminas  stimulat  dolor, 

Cum  patuit  una  pellici  ct  nupta)  domus. — Scncc.  Here.  ..Et.  233. 

^  "  TToai^  conjux  est  connubio  junctus,  uv7}j)  is  quo  uxor  fruitur.'" — i 
Herm.-— -B. 


220  TRACHINLE.  [555—597. 

that  1  will  explain  to  you.  I  bad  a  gift  once  on  a  time  of  old 
bestowed  by  an  ancient  Centaur,  concealed  in  a  brazen  nrn, 
which,  while  }'et  a  girl,  I  took  from  the  death-v/ound  of  the 
shaggy-bosomed  Nessus,  who,  for  hire,  bore  mortals  in  his 
arms  over  the  deep  flow  of  the  river  Evcnus,  neither  plying 
v.'ith  tlie  speeding  oar,  nor  with  the  sails  of  a  bark,  lie,  bear- 
inii;  me  also  on  his  shoulders,  when  first  at  mv  father's  biddinn; 
I  Ibllowed  Hercules  as  a  bride,  as  he  reached  the  middle  of 
the  stream,  touched  me  with  lewd  hands  ;  but  I  screamed  out ; 
and  the  son  of  Jove  immediately  turning,  sent  from  his  hands 
a  v/iuiied  arrow ;  and  throuizh  his  chest,  even  into  the  lun^s, 
it  whizzed.  And  these  were  the  words  that  the  dying  Centaur 
spoke :  "  Daughter  of  aged  Q{^ncus,  such  profit  shall  you  de- 
rive, if  you  obey  me,  from  this  passage,  because  you  are  the 
last  I  bear  across  tlie  river ;  for  if  you  take  with  your  hands 
the  curdled  gore  from  my  wound,  wdierc  tlie  monstrous  Hydra 
of  Lerna  has  steeped  the  arrow  with  his  black  venom,  this  w^ill 
prove  to  you  a  soothing  charm  over  tlic  mind  of  Hercules,  so 
that  ho  shall  not,  looking  on  any  woman,  feel  more  affection 
for  her  than  for  you."  Kevolving,  my  friends,  this  counsel  in 
my  mind  (for  in  the  house,  after  his  death,  it  remained  care- 
fully shut  up),  I  have  steeped  this  garment,  applying  wdiatevcr 
he,  while  alive,  commanded  ;  and  the  task  is  comj>lcted.  But 
may  I  neither  know  nor  learn  the  deeds  of  evil  daring — and 
those  women  wdio  attempt  them  I  hate  ;  yet  if  we  can  anyhow 
get  the  better  of  this  damsel  by  philtres  and  soothing  charms 
essayed  on  Hercules,  this  plan  has  been  well  contrived,  unless 
I  appear  to  you  to  make  a  vain  attempt ;  but  if  I  do,  it  shall 
be  desisted  from. 

Cii.  But  if  there  be  any  faith  in  the  trial,  you  seem  to  us  not 
to  have  determined  amiss. 

Di:i.  Thus  at  least  my  faith  rests,  so  that  it  is  accomjianied, 
indeed,  by  my  opinion  of  success ;  but  I  have  never  yet  made 
acquaintance  with  tlic  experiment. 

Cii.  But  it  is  necessary  to  obtain  tlic  knowledge  by  doing 
the  action ;  since,  though  you  seem  to  have,  you  can  not  have 
the  knowledije,  without  making;  the  trial. 

Dki.  But  we  shall  soon  know,  for  I  sec  tlic  herald  already 
wiLhout  the  gates,  and  lie  will  quickly  go.  Only  let  our  secret 
be  faithfully  preserved  by  you,  for  if  you  do  even  what  is  base 
in  the  dark,  }'ou  shall  never  fall  into  shame. 


598— G47.]  TRACHINLE.  221 

Li.  Wliat  is  to  be  done  ?  tell  me,  O  daugliter  of  Q{neus, 
since  we  are  already  tardj  by  long  delay. 

Dei.  But  I  Lave  been  preparing  for  this  very  tiling,  -vvliile 
you  have  been  talking  to  tlicse  strangers  ■\vithin,  that  ycu  bear 
for  me  this  well-vroven  robe,  a  gift  to  that  hero  from  my  hand. 
And,  presenting  it,  direct  him  that  no  one  of  mortals  before 
liim  put  it  on  his  person,  nor  that  ray  cf  the  sun  behold  it, 
nor  sacred  shrine,  nor  flame  from  the  hearth,  before  that, 
standing  conspicuous,  he  display  it  bright  to  tlie  gods,  on  some 
day  marked  by  the  sacrifice  of  bulls.  For  thus  I  voAvcd,  if  I 
ever  should  see  him  safe  at  home,  or  hear  of  his  return,  that 
v>itli  full  ritual  observance  I  would  deck  him  in  this  vest,  and 
exhibit  him  to  the  gods,  a  new  sacrificer  in  a  nev\^  garment. 
And  of  this  you  shall  bear  to  him  a  token,  which  he  will  easily 
recognize,  when  he  casts  his  eye  on  this  seal.  But  go ;  and 
first  observe  this  rule,  not  to  desire,  being  a  messenger,  to  do 
more  than  you  are  required  ;  and  in  the  next  place,  act  so  that 
his  fiivor  toward  you,  uniting  with  mine,  instead  of  single,  may 
become  double. 

Li.  But,  if  I  faithfully  exercise  this  art  cf  Hermes,  I  will 
not  be  guilty  of  any  failure  in  your  trust,  so  as  not  bearing  this 
vessel,  to  show  it  him  in  its  present  state,  and  to  add  faithfully 
the  words  which  you  have  spoken. 

Dei.  You  may  now,  if  you  choose,  depart  ;  for  you  also 
know  of  the  affairs  in  the  house,  in  what  state  they  are. 

Li.  I  both  know,  and  I  will  report,  that  they  are  well. 

Lei.  And  you  know  too,  having  seen  my  reception  of  the 
stranger,  that  I  welcomed  her  in  a  friendly  manner. 

Li.   So  that  my  heart  was  amazed  wdth  joy. 

Lei.  What  else  indeed  should  you  relate '?  for  I  fear  lest  you 
first  tell  my  longing  desire  for  him,  before  you  know  if  the  af- 
fection be  mutual. 

CiiOKUS.  O  ye  vrlio  dv\Tli  by  the  warm  baths  bordering  on 
the  station  of  the  ships  and  the  rocks ;  and  ye  by  the  cliiil's  of 
JEta,  and  the  middle  of  the  Melian  lake,  and  the  shore  of  the 
virgin  with  golden  shaft,  where  the  Pylian  assemblies  of  the 
Greeks  convene,  the  fiute,  with  its  beauteous  notes,  ere  long  re- 
turns to  you,  breathing  forth  no  unpleasing  melody,  but  such 
as  may  challenge  the  lyre  cf  the  divine  muse.  For  the  son  of 
Jove  and  Alcmena,  bearing  the  spoils  of  every  virtue,  hies  him 
liomc ;  whom,  absent  from  his  country  and  afar  over  the  sea. 


222  TRACHIXLE.  [648— G35. 

we  waited  for  all  ignorant  of  his  fate,  tlirougii  the  full  space 
of  twelve  long  months.  And  his  beloved  spouse  in  misery,  in 
saddest  misery  at  heart,  ever  drenched  with  tears,  kept  pining 
away  ;  but  now  hath  Mars,  being  maddened  by  desire,  brouglit 
to  a  close  our  day  of  sorrow.  Let  him  come  !  let  him  come ! 
let  not  the  bark  that  bears  him  on  with  m.any  an  oar  stop  in 
its  course,  before  that  he  effect  his  way  to  this  city,  having 
left  the  altar  of  the  island  where  he  is  said  to  be  sacrilicing ; 
whence  let  him  hasten  through  the  whole  day,  being  ^\Tapped 
in  the  robe  deeply  anointed  with  persuasion,  according  as  the 
Centaur  directed. 

Dei.  How  I  fear,  O  virgins,  lest  all  that  I  have  just  done, 
be  done  by  me  be3'ond  what  is  right. 

Cii.  O  Deianira,  daughter  of  (Eneus,  what  has  happened  ? 

Dei.  I  know  not ;  but  I  fear  lest  I  shall  quickly  appear  to 
have  wrought  a  great  evil  from  the  persuasion  of  good  hope. 

Cii.  Surely  it  can  not  be  any  thing  about  your  gifts  to  Her- 
cules ? 

Dei.  Yes,  most  particularly ;  so  that  I  would  never  advise 
any  one  to  act  with  promptness  in  an  uncertain  event. 

Cii.  Tell  us,  if  it  may  be  told,  from  what  circumstance  your 
fears  arise. 

Dei.  a  circumstance  has  occurred,  of  such  a  nature  that  I 
shall  describe  an  unexpected  marvel,  ye  damsels,  for  you  to 
hear.i  For  that,  with  which  I  was  just  anointing  the  sump- 
tuous garment,^  the  white  avooI  from  the  snowy  Heece  of  the 
sheep,  that  has  disappeared,  consumed  by  none  of  those  within, 
but  corroded  by  itself,  it  wastes  awav  and  smoulders  down  the 
surface  of  the  slab.^  But  that  you  may  knov/  the  Avliole  way 
in  which  this  v\^as  done,  I  shall  extend  my  narration  to  greater 
length.  For  of  those  charges  Avith  which  the  wild  Centaur, 
while  suffering  in  his  side  by  the  bitter  barb,  had  tutored  me, 
I  let  slip  not  one,  but  preserved  them  like  an  indelible  writing 
on  a  brazen  tablet.  And  thus  it  was  commanded  me,  and  I 
obeyed  it,  that  I  should  preserve  this  drug  unexposed  to  tlic 

^  On  the  construction  sec  'Wunder's  clever  note. — B. 

^  "  'YivdvTiipa  TTcrr/oj^  i.  c.  ;j;fra}z'a,  tunicam,  vcslcm  intcriorcm.  Kr3 
enim  ivedvovro,  superiorcs  {x'/.alvaL  sc.  ;\;Aa//i(5rf,  ct  hiijusniodi  ahc:) 
Ttepiefid/.yovTO.'" — Musgravc. — Tr.      But  sec  Hermann. — B. 

^  Or  "smooth  stone,"  where  she  had  laid  out  the  wool  to  dry. — Tu. 
Hermann  eays  *'  grave!,"  but  what  becomes  of  a/cpafi — B. 


686—726.]  TRACHINL^.  22o 

fire,  and  untoiiclied  by  the  warm  sunbeam  in  those  close 
recesses,  until  I  should  somehow  apply  it  in  fresh  unction. 
And  this  I  did :  and  now,  when  the  operation  was  to  be  tried, 
I  secretly,  in-doors  within  tiie  house,  spread  it  on  the  garment 
with  a  lock  of  wool,  having  drawn  it  from  the  fleece  of  one  of 
my  own  sheep ;  and  folding  up  the  gift,  I  placed  it  secure 
from  the  sun  in  a  hollow  chest,  as  you  saw.  But,  going  with- 
in, I  see  a  sight  that  can  not  be  described,  and  impossible 
for  mortal  to  conceive.  For  I  chance  to  throw  the  wool 
torn  from  the  sheep,  with  which  I  was  smearing  the  robe, 
into  the  blaze  of  mid-day,  the  rays  of  the  sun ;  and  as  it  be- 
came warm,  it  ail  melts  into  nothing,  and  wastes  to  dust  on 
tlie  ground,  chiefly  resembling,  in  appearance,  the  dust  from 
the  saw,  should  you  chance  to  see  it,  in  the  cutting  of  wood. 
In  this  way  it  lay  fallen  ;  and  from  the  ground  where  it  was 
spread  out,  there  boil  up  clots  of  foam,  like  as  when  the  rich 
juice  of  mellow  autumn  is  poured  on  the  earth  from  the  vine 
of  Bacchus.  So  that  I,  wretched,  do  not  know  to  what 
thoufrhts  to  turn :  and  I  see  that  I  have  wrought  a  dreadful 
deed.  For  whence  at  all,  and  in  return  for  what,  should  the 
dying  Centaur  do  an  act  of  kindness  to  me,  for  whom  he 
perished '?  It  can  not  be  so  :  but  wishing  to  destroy  him  who 
shot  him,  he  beguiled  me ;  of  which  I  too  late  acquire  the 
knowledge,  when  it  is  no  longer  of  avail.  For  I  alone,  if  I 
am  not  deceived  in  my  mind,  I,  wretched  woman,  shall  be  the 
cause  of  his  death.  For  I  know  that  the  arrow  that  gave  the 
wound  Avas  fatal  even  to  the  divine  Chiron, ^  and  destroys  ev- 
ery thing  it  touches ;  and  how  shall  not  the  black  venom  of 
the  gore,  issuing  from  the  wound  of  the  Centaur,  slay  also 
Hercules  ?  In  my  opinion,  too  sure  it  will.  And  yet  I  am 
determined,  if  he  fall,  that  at  the  same  moment^  I  too  shall 
die  along  with  him ;  for  to  live  in  evil  report  is  not  to  be  en- 
dured by  a  woman  who  prefers  to  every  thing  else  a  nature 
abhorrent  of  baseness. 

Cii.  It  follows,  of  course,  that  there  should  be  horror  at 
dreadful  deeds  ;  but  it  is  not  right  to  judge  of  our  expectations 
before  the  event. 

Dei.  In  dishonorable  designs  there  is  no  hope  which  may 
conciliate  any  confidence. 

^  This  story  is  to  be  found  in  OviJ'a  Fasti,  Book  V.  379. 
^  V,'ur.dcr"s  coiijocturc  l\k[x'j  for  op[iy  seems  probable. — B. 


224  TRACHINL-E.  [727—756. 

Cii.  15ut  for  tliosG  -vvlio  fall  into  involuntary  error,  there  is 
a  softening  of  anger,  which  it  is  lilting  you  should  meet. 

Dei.  Such  comfort  may  he  suggest,  who  does  not  share  in 
the  evil,  but  to  whom  there  is  at  home  no  grief. ^ 

Cii,  It  v^^ere  as  well  for  you  to  suppress  in  silence  the  rest 
of  your  words,  except  you  are  going  to  disclose  something  to 
your  son  ;  for  he  is  present  who  formerly  went  away  in  search 
of  his  father. 

Hyl.2  O  mother !  how  of  three  things  I  would  choose  one, 
either  that  you  vrere  dead,  or  that  if  you  lived  you  were  called 
the  mother  of  some  other  son,  or  from  som.e  whence  you  might 
acquire  better  feelings  than  those  you  now  possess. 

Dei.  What  deed  of  mine,  my  son,  excites  this  abhorrence  ? 

Hyl.  Know  that  you  have  this  day  slain  your  husband,  I 
mean  my  father. 

Dei.  Woe  is  me !  what  tale,  my  son,  do  you  bear  ? 

Hyl.  The  tale  of  that  which  it  is  impossible  can  be 
undone ;  for  who  is  able  to  uncreate  that  which  has  once  ap- 
peared ? 

Dei.  IIow  say  you,  my  son?  From  what  mortal  having 
gained  this  information,  do  you  assert  that  I  have  C.cne  such 
a  hateful  deed  ? 

PIyl.  I  myself  witnessed,  with  my  eyes,  the  grievous  suffer- 
ings of  my  father,  and  I  did  not  hear  it  by  report. 

Dei.  And  where  did  you  meet  with  him,  and  v/here  present 
by  his  side  ? 

Hyl.  If  it  is  requisite  you  should  know,  it  behooves  me  to 
tell  you  all.  AVhen  he  departed,^  after  having  destroyed  the 
renowned  city  of  Eurytus,  bearing  with  him  the  trophies  and 
fh'st-fruits  of  victory ;  there  is  a  certain  sea-washed  shore  of 
Eubcra,  [called]  the  Cencean  promontory,  where  he  conse- 
crates to  his  father  Jove  altars  and  the  foliage  of  a  sacred 
grove  :  there  I,  with  longing  joy,  first  beheld  him.  And  when 
he  vras  about  to  offer  up  the  sacrifice  of  many  victims,  there 

^  "  Facile  omncs,  cum  valemus,  recta  consilia  regrotis  domus  : 
Tu,  ti  hie  sis,  alitcr  scntias." — Tcrcnt.  Ar.dr.  11.  i.  9. 

^  Hyllus  has  been  away  at  Ccna>urn,  ami  back  again,  during  an  hour's 
conversation  between  his  mother  and  the  Chorus.  This  is  a  violation  of 
Ihc  unity  of  time  v.ith  a  vengeance. 

^  llccte  hie  60'  pro  ure,  non  pro  {',6i,  accipltur :  qmim  -profcctus  est  cx- 
fugnata  GSrhalza,  Ccn(2iim  est,  uhi  sacra  fecit :  pro  his:  qiaua  ]>rofccta 
est,  sacra  fee  U  in  Ccnco. — Hermann. 


757—802.]  TRACHINL'E.  225 

cume  a  herald  from  Iiomc,  his  servant  Lichas,  bearing  your 
gift,  the  deadly  garment,  which  he  putting  on  as  you  directed, 
slays  twelv-e  bulls,  of  perfect  shape,  the  first-fruits  of  his  spoils  ; 
but  he  brought  in  all  to  the  altar  a  mingled  herd  of  a  hundred 
cattle.  And  at  first  indeed  the  wretched  man,  rejoicing  in  his 
robe  and  ornaments,  addressed  his  vows  with  a  cheerful  mind ; 
but  when  the  bloody  flame  blazed  forth  from  the  sacred  offer- 
ings and  oily  wood,  sweat  burst  out  on  his  skin,  and  the  tunic 
clung  to  his  body,  closely  glued,  as  if  by  some  artificer's  hand, 
to  every  limb ;  and  convulsive  wrenching  of  the  bones  suc- 
ceeded. Then,  as  the  envenomed  gore  of  the  accursed  Jlydra 
fed  upon  him,  he  called  on  the  unfortunate  Lichas,  him  who 
liad  no  share  in  your  guilt,  by  what  treachery  he  had  brought 
the  garment ;  and  he,  ill-starred  wretch,  all-ignorant,  said  it 
was  the  gift  of  you  alone,  as  it  had  been  sent.  And  he,  as  he 
heard  these  words,  and  a  piercing  spasm  assailed  his  lungs, 
seizing  him  by  tlie  foot,  v/here  the  ancle  bends,  dashes  him  on 
a  rock,  washed  all  around  by  the  sea ;  and  the  white  brains 
gush  out  from  the  middle  of  the  head,  the  blood  being  scatter- 
ed around,  and  the  hair  with  it.^  And  all  the  people  shout- 
ed aloud  with  lamentation,  the  hero  being  afflicted  with  this 
pest,  and  the  herald  being  slain  ;  but  no  one  dared  to  approach 
llercules.  For  he  was  writhing  in  the  pain,  both  lying  on 
the  ground  and  standing  up,  shouting  and  shrieking  ;  and  the 
rocks  around  resounded,  the  mountain  headlands  of  the  Lo- 
crians,  and  the  promontories  of  Euboea.  But  when  he  grew 
faint,  oft  dashing  liimself,  tlie  wretched  man,  on  the  ground, 
and  howling  v/itli  loud  clamor  reviling  the  evil  nuptials  of 
your  unhappy  couch,  and  the  alliance  of  Qilneus,  how  he  had 
contracted  it  to  the  ruin  of  his  life,  then  raising  his  distorted 
eyes  from  the  mist  settling  over  them,  he  saw  me  shedding 
tears  amid  the  numerous  crowd,  and  looking  on  me,  he  calls 
me :  "  O  my  son  come  hither ;  do  not  shun  my  miseries,  not 
even  though  it  be  necessary  for  you  to  die  along  v/ith  me,  your 
dying  father ;  but  bear  me  away,  and  by  ail  means  if  possible, 
place  me  there,  where  no  one  of  mortals  shall  behold  me ;  and 
if  you  feel  pity,  transport  me,  at  least,  from  this  land^  with 
ail  speed,  nor  let  me  die  here."     When  he  had  urged  this 

^  I  have,  with  the  translator,  followed  Brunck's  emendation,  uparug  6i 
Aevic^,v  fi.  iKp.  fiiaov,  dcacrr.  a'ifj,aTog  liGjirjc  0'  6/wv. — B. 

^  "  Maxims  omnium  cupicbat  Hercules,  v.t  solus,  neminc  mortalium 

K2 


226  TRACHINL^.  [803—834. 

request,  v*'e  placed  him  in  tlie  middle  of  a  ship,  and  brought 
him,  bellowing  in  agony,  with  difficulty  to  these  shores ;  and 
you  shall  preeently  see  him,  either  alive  or  newly  dead.  In 
such  devices  and  deeds  against  my  father,  O  mother,  have  you 
been  detected,  for  which  may  penal  Justice  and  the  avenging 
Fury  repay  you  :  tliis,  if  it  be  lawful  at  least,  I  imjirecate : 
but  it  is  lawful,  since  you  toward  me  have  cast  away  all  law, 
having  slain  a  hero  the  noblest  of  all  on  earth,  such  another 
as  you  shall  never  behold. 

Ch.  Why  do  you  depart  in  silence?  Do  you  not  know 
that  by  preserving  silence  you  confirm  the  charge  of  your 
accuser  ? 

Hyl.  Suffer  her  to  go  ;  may  there  be  a  fair  wind  to  her  de- 
parting to  a  distance  from  my  sight.  For  why  is  it  necessary 
to  cherish  the  empty  sound  of  a  mother's  name,  since  she  in 
nothing  acts  like  a  mother  ?  But  let  her  go  where  she  chooses ; 
and  the  deliglit  that  she  has  afforded  my  father,  that  same  may 
she  herself  enjoy. 

CiiOKUS.  Behold,  ye  virgins,  how  cpickiy  liath  advanced  to 
its  completion  the  heaven-sent  decree  of  ancient  oracular 
prescience,  which  announced,  that  when  the  twelfth  year 
should  arrive  at  its  close,  in  the  fullness  of  m.onths,  there 
should  ensue  a  respite  from  his  toils  to  Jove's  genuine  son  ; 
and,  without  swerving,  it  is  speeding  on  this  doom  in  its 
course.  For  how  can  he  who  beholds  not  the  light,  endure 
any  longer  the  servitude  of  toil,  when  dead?^  For  if  him,  in 
the  bloody  death-cloud^  of  the  Centaur,  fate,  brought  to  pass 
by  crafty  means,  envenom ;  in  his  side  the  poison  rankling, 
which  death  and  the  spotted  serpent  gave  birth  to ;  how  shall 


prsesente,  mortem  obiret  :  proximum  ab  eo  crat,  ut  ex  Euboea  saltern  ante 
mortem  aveheretur,  nc  .Echalicnsibus  gaudii  materiem  prcebcrct,  ut  bene 
judicat  Schoiiastcs.  Hoc  igitur  impensius  quam  altcrum  rogat :  At  si 
miscricordia  tangcris,  sallcvi  tu  inc  ex  hac  rcgionc  dcportari  cura.'' — 
Musgravc. 

^  But  Wunder's  emendation  ^cT'f  tVL  tcot'  Itl  ttuvuv  Ixoi  ?MTpEici\  is 
very  ingenious  and  plausible. — B. 

^  (^oLvia  vec^i/M  appears  to  mean  the  darkness  that  death  would  soon 
l)ring  upon  the  eyes  of  Hercules  (cf.  794,  tot'  ck  Trpooedpov  7.LyvvoQ 
6iucTpo(jov  '0(^fla/.fj.uv  upar),  and  if  Vv^e  take  uvuyua  in  its  ordinary  sense 
of  "  fate,  necessity,"  and  render  f5o7o-oiof  "  v.'orking  by  stcaltby  means," 
or  in  a  similar  wav,  I  think  tlie  difliculty  of  this  passage  will  be  removed. 
— B. 


835—873]  TRACHINLE.  227 

lie  behold  another  clay  than  the  present,  being  racked  by  the 
horrible  spectre^  of  the  Hydra?  and,  at  the  same  time,  the 
deadly  pangs  produced  by  the  guileful  words  of  the  dark 
and  shaggy  Nessus,  torture  him  with  their  burning  throbs. 
AVhcrefore  she,  wretched  woman,  seeing  the  great  and  sudden 
bane  of  new  nuptials  hastening  to  the  house,  did  not  perceive^ 
that  the  counsel  proceeded  from  a  deceitful  purpose,  with  a 
destructive  issue. -^  Sure,  somewhere  in  misery,  she  is  groan- 
ing ;  sure,  somewhere  she  is  shedding  the  fresh  dev/  of  fast- 
falling  tears.  But  his  approaching  death  points  the  way  to  a 
secret  and  deep  calamity.^^  The  fount  of  tears  hath  burst  forth. 
The  disease  envelops  him  :  oh,  ye  gods,  such  a  suffering,  for 
one  to  pity,  as  never  befell  the  illustrious  Hercules^  from  his 
enemies.  Oh,  woe  for  the  black  point  of  his  champion  spear, 
which  then  didst  bring  his  new-won  bride  from  lofty  JbLchalia ! 
But  Venus,  executing  her  ministry  in  silence,  liath  clearly 
appeared  the  cause  of  all. 

SE3II-CIT.  Whether  am  I  deceived,  or  do  I  hear  some  lam- 
entation newly  bursting  forth  in  the  house?     "What  shall  I 


say? 


SE3n-cn.  Some  one  utters  within  no  doubtful  wail,  but 
one  of  deep  sorrow  ;  and  something  new  happens  to  the 
house. 

Semi-cii.  But  do  you  perceive  the  old  woman,  how,  in  an 
unusual  way,  and  with  contracted  brow,  she  comes  to  us,  about 
to  signify  some  intelligence? 

NuKSE.  O  virgins,  how  has  that  gift  which  was  sent  to  Her- 
<jules  been  the  beginning  to  us  of  no  small  evils ! 

Cii.  What  new  event,  old  woman,  do  you  tell  ? 

'  I  am  very  doubtful  about  Wunder's  conjecture  vufiart  for  (^uG[iarL. 
— B. 

^  Schol.  oi)  cvvf/Ksv,  cf  v.  580,  TrpoaiSaAovg'  oca  ^(Zv  ksIvoc  el~e,  and 
Lobeck  on  Phrynich.  p.  282.  Wunder  has  altered  the  text  to  TrpooD.aliev, 
Vv'hicli  he  supports  v*'ith  some  ingenuity. — B. 

^  See  Liddell,  s.  v.  cwa/J.ayrj. — B. 

*  Implying,  that  in  case  of  the  death  of  Hercules,  Deianira  would  not 
survive  him. 

^  The  translators  read  'Hpa/cZt'a,  which  is  in  a  few  MSS.  In  Liddell's 
Lexicon,  uyaK/yLTov  is  joined  with  ttcIOoc,  which  would  mean,  "  such  a 
too-memorable  suffering  cf  Hercules,  worthy  for  men  to  pity,  hath  be- 
fallen," according  to  Dindorfa  text. — B. 


228  TRACHINLE.  [874—906. 

NuE.  Deianira  lias  gone  the  last  way  of  all  without  moving 
the  foot. 

Cii.  Surely  not  as  dead  ? 

NuR.  You  have  heard  all. 

Cii.  Is  the  Avretched  woman  dead  1 

NuR.  You  hear  it  a  second  time. 

Cii.  "Wretched,  ruined  woman !  in  what  way  do  you  say 
that  she  died? 

NuR.  In  a  most  miserable  way,  as  regards  at  least  the 
deed. 

Cii.  Tell,  oh  woman,  what  death  she  met. 

NuR.   She  destroyed  herself. 

Cii.  What  rage  or  what  madness  urged  her  to  take  up  tliis 
point  of  a  cruel  weapon  ?  How  did  she  contrive  alone  to  effect 
death  in  addition  to  death  ?^ 

NuR.  By  the  wound  of  the  mournful  steel. 

Cii.  Did  you  look,  oh  wretched  woman,  on  this  outrage  ? 

NuK.  I  looked  on,  as  being  in  truth  near  her  side. 

Cii.  What  was  it '?  how — quick  declare. 

NuR.  She  herself  by  her  own  hand  does  the  deed, 

Ch.  What  do  you  say  ? 

NuR.  That  which  is  certain. 

Cii.  This  new  bride  has  produced  a  mighty  fury  to  this 
house. 

NuR.  Too  sure,  indeed ;  but  still  more,  if,  present  and 
near,  you  had  beheld  what  she  did,  would  you  have  pitied 
her. 

Cii.  And  did  any  woman's  hand  dare  to  do  these  deeds  ? 

NuR.  Yes — and  terribly :  but  you  shall  learn  the  circum- 
stances, so  as  to  agree  with  me.  When  she  entered  by  her- 
self within  the  palace,  and  saw  her  son  in  the  court,  spreading 
garments  over  the  hollow  litter,  in  order  that  he  might  return 
to  meet  his  father,  concealing  herself  where  none  should  see 
her,  she  shrieked  out,  as  she  fell  before  the  altars,  that  she 
had  become  desolate,  and  wept  when  she  touched  any  of  the 
instruments  which,  wretched  woman !  she  Avas  wont  to  use :  | 
and  roaming  here  and  there  through  the  palace,  if  she  chanced 

'  I  have  followed  Dindorf  accordincT  to  the  proposed  plan,  but  tlic 
reader  must  look  to  Hermann  and  AVunder  for  other  arrangements  of  the 
text,  I  will  not  say  satisfactory  ones. — B. 


907—952]  TRACHINLE.  229 

to  see  tlie  person  of  some  loved  domestic,^  {lie  unhappy  woman 
wept  at  the  sight,  herself  arraigning  her  own  fortune,  and  her 
sterile  existence  for  the  future.  But  when  she  desisted  from 
these  complaints,  I  see  her  suddenly  rushing  to  the  chamber  of 
Hercules ;  and,  concealed  in  the  shade,  I  watched  her  with  se- 
cret eye.;  and  I  behold  her  casting  the  outspread  garments  on 
the  couch  of  Hercules.  But  when  she  had  finished  this  task, 
leaping  up,  she  sat  down  in  the  middle  of  the  bed,  and  giving 
vent  to  the  v/arm  fountains  of  tears,  spoke  :  "  O  bed,  and  scene 
of  my  nuptial  joys,  for  the  future  now  farewell,  since  you  shall 
never  again  receive  me  to  repose  on  this  couch."  Having 
spoken  these  words,  with  quick  hand  she  unfastens  her  robe 
where  the  clasp,  wrought  in  gold,  was  fastened  in  front  of 
the  breast,  and  she  laid  bare  all  her  side  and  her  left  shoul- 
der. And  I,  running  as  fast  as  I  was  able,  tell  to  her  son  the 
deeds  she  devised  ;  and  while  we  hasten  thither,  and  hither  we 
see  her  wounded  by  the  double-edged  sword,  in  the  side,  be- 
neath the  liver  and  the  heart.  But  her  son,  when  he  beheld 
her,  shrieked  ;  for  the  wretched  youth  perceived  that  she  had 
put  her  hand  to  this  deed  in  passion,  being  too  late  informed 
of  what  had  taken  place  at  home — how  she  unwilHngly  had 
done  this  at  the  instigation  of  the  Centaur.  Hereupon,  her 
unhappy  son  Vv^ailing  for  her,  neither  omitted  aught  of  lamenta- 
tion, nor  ceased  to  bestow  kisses  on  her  lips,  but  stretching 
himself  out  by  her  side  by  side,  he  lay  deeply  mourning  that  he 
had  rashly  Vv^ounded  her  with  a  false  accusation,  and  weeping, 
because  that  he  should  be  at  once  deprived  of  two,  his  father 
and  his  mother.  Such  is  tlie  state  of  circumstances  here,  so 
that  if  any  one  count  on  two  days  or  more,  he  is  foolish ;  for 
there  is  no  morrow,  before  he  pass  without  misfortune  the  pres- 
ent day. 

Chorus.  Over  which  shall  I  first  raise  my  lamentation? 
It  is  ditiicult  for  me,  a  wretched  being,  to  decide  which  has 
been  consummated  in  most  utter  ruin.^  The  one,  indeed,  we 
at  present  behold  in  the  palace,  and  the  other  we  are  on  the 
eve  of  expectation  of  beholding  :'^  and  it  is  the  same  thing  to 

^  Compare  the  exquisite  description  of  the  death  of  Alcestis,  in  Eur. 
Ale.  178,  sqq.— B. 

=  See  Wunder.— B. 

^  Hermann  reads  ^e/6/^ei^',  v/hichDindorf  receives.  Erfurdt  and  Wun- 
der /xivofiev,  which  seems  preferable. — B. 


230  TRACHINL'E.  [953—1000 

have  and  to  be  about  to  have.  Oh  that  some  gale  of  wind, 
blowingr  in  ftxvorable  direction  from  the  heart  of  the  house, 
would  bear  me  away  from  this  spot,  that  I  may  not  die  in 
dismay  as  soon  as  I  once  behold  the  valiant  son  of  Jove : 
since  in  incurable  pain  they  say  he  is  advancing^  before  the 
palace — an  unspeakable  marvel.  In  near,  therefore,  and  no 
distant  anticipation,  have  I  mourned  like  the  nightingale  of 
plaintive  note ;  for  here  comes  the  attendant  procession  of 
strangers.  Where  are  they  bearing  him  ?  As  if  taking  care 
of  a  friend,  each  lifts  his  slow  noiseless  steps.  Alas!  he, 
speecliless,  is  borne  along.  AVhether  must  we  deem  him  dead 
or  asleep? 

Hyl.  Woe  is  me  for  thee,  oh  father !  woe  is  me  unhappy  for 
thee!  AVhat  shall  I  do?  AVhat  counsel  shall  I  take?  Woe 
is  me ! 

Old  Man.  Peace,  my  son ;  do  not  awaken  the  fell  pangs  of 
your  maddened  father  [for  though  thus  sunk  down,  he  lives] ; 
but  compress  with  your  teeth  your  lips. 

IIyl.  Plow  say  you,  old  man  ?  does  he  live  ? 

O.  M.  Beware,  my  son,  lest  you  awake  him,  now  enthralled 
by  sleep,  and  rouse  him  up,  and  again  kindle  the  fuiy  of  his 
dire  disease. 

Hyl.  But  my  mind  has  become  phrensied  to  a  degree  intol- 
erable to  me,  a  wretched  mortal. 

Hekcules.  O  Jove  I  to  what  region  have  I  come  ?  Among 
what  mortals  do  I  lie  tortured  by  these  never-ceasing  pains? 
AVoe  is  me  wretched  I  The  accursed  pest  again  devours  me ! 
Alas! 

O.  M.  Do  you  not  perceive  how  much  better  it  would  have 
been  to  bury  your  words  in  silence,  and  not  dispel  sleep  from 
his  temples  and  eyelids  ? 

IIyl.  But  I  am  not  able  to  be  silent,  beholding  this  calam- 

Her.  Cena^'i,  foundation  of  altars,  what  a  return  for  what 
splendid  sacrifices  have  ye  made  to  wretched  me !  O  Jove, 
what  a  disgrace  tliou  hast  brought  on  me !  a  disgrace 
such  as  I  would  tliat  I,  in  my  misery,  had  never  beheld 
with  my  eyes — this  innppeasable  fury  of  madness  they  must 

^  TTpd  dofxup.  This  is  evident  nonsense.  The  editors  oscillate  between 
trpdc  dufxuv,  TtpoQ  66/.10V,  Trpbr  dufia.     Wunder  reads  du/novde. — B. 


lOOi-^1050.]  TRACKIXLI].  231 

look  on  !^  Vriiat  charmer  is  there,  or  "vvh.at  practitioner  of  the 
healing  art,  who,  "svitliout  the  aid  of  Jove,  shall  lull  to  peace 
this  pest  ?'  Oh  that,  though  far  oij',  I  might  behold  this  mira- 
cle !  Alas !  alas !  suffer  me,  suffer  me  miserable  to  sleep,  suf- 
fer me  to  sleep  my  last  sleep.  Where  do  you  touch  me  ?  Where 
do  you  lay  me '?  You  will  kill  me !  you  Avill  kill  me !  You  have 
awakened  the  pangs  that  slumbered.  It  has  touched  me :  it 
again  comes  on.  AVhere  are  ye,  oh  ye  most  unjust  men  of  all 
the  Greeks !  for  whom  I  oft,  destroying  monsters  in  the  sea 
and  in  all  the  forests  exposed  my  life  ?  and  now  against  me  is 
this  maladv,  no  one  will  turn  either  fire  or  a  friendly  sword ! 
alas !  alas !  nor  hastening,  is  willing  to  cut  oil'  my  head  from 
wretched  life  I^  alas  !  alas ! 

O.  M.  O  son  of  the  hero !  this  task  has  become  too  great 
for  my  strength  ;  but  do  you  assist,  for  you  have  a  clearer  eye 
than  me  to  discern  what  will  aid  liim.^ 

Hyl.  I  indeed  lend  my  hand  ;  but  it  is  impossible  for  me,, 
either  from  my  own  or  from  foreign  resources,  to  allay  the  tor- 
tures of  this  life.     Jove  alone  possesses  the  remedy. 

Her.  O  my  son!  vrhere  ever  art  thou?  Here,  here,  taking 
hold  of  me,  raise  me  up.  Alas  !  alas  !  oh  my  sad  fortune  !  It 
bursts  on  me  again,  it  bursts  on  me,  the  wretched  ruin  of  my 
life,  the  immedicable  fell  disease.  O  Pallas,  again  it  tortures 
me.  Take  compassion,  O  my  son,  on  your  father,  and,  draw- 
ing an  innocent  sword,  strike  me  beneath  the  throat.  0  heal 
the  agonies  with  Avhich  your  impious  mother  has  maddened 
me :  whom  may  I  behold  perishing  thus,  even  thus  as  she  has 
destroyed  me.  O  brother  of  Jove,  dear  Pluto,  lull  me,  O  lull 
me  to  sleep,  ending,  by  a  speedy  fate,  my  wretched  existence. 

Cii.  I  have  shuddered,  my  friends,  hearing  by  what  suffer- 
ings our  king,  mighty  as  he  is,  is  persecuted. 

Her.  Oh,  I  that  have  toiled  with  my  hands  and  with  my 
shoulders  in  many  a  diiring  and  unutterable  deed ;  and  never 
yet  has  the  spouse  of  Jove  presented  to  me  such  an  evil,  nor 
Eurystheus,  my  hated  enemy,  as  this  net,  woven  by  the  furies, 
bv  which  I  die,  Avhich  the  treacherous  dausrhter  of  Qi^neus  has 

^  Wunder  has  entirely  omitted  vs.  098-1000,  a  comfortable  way  of 
getting  rid  of  the  dilFicuity.      Perhaps  we  sliould  read  iiaradTj^Q^jvaL. — B. 
^  ^^'under  again  gets  rid  of  ;r6jp?r  TLrivCt;. — B. 
'  This  seems  corrupt. — B. 
*  This  io  bad  enough,  but  "Wunder's  emendation  is  worse  still. 


7< 


232  T11ACHL\LE.  [1051—1102. 

afTixed  to  my  shoulders.  For,  glued  to  my  sides,  it  lias  gnaw- 
ed away  my  outward  flesh,  and  clinging  within  it  drains  the 
arteries  of  my  lungs :  and  it  has  already  drunk  up  my  vig- 
orous blood,  and  I  am  consumed  through  my  r/hole  frame, 
bound  in  these  inexplicable  fetters.  This  neither  the  martial 
array  on  the  plains,  nor  the  earth-born  hosts  of  the  gianti^,  nor 
the  might  of  monsters,  nor  Greek,  nor  barbarian,  nor  all  the 
countries  which,  clearing  from  their  pests,  I  penetrated,  ever 
effected ;  but  a  vv'oman,  being  a  feminine,  not  a  masculine 
nature,  by  herself,  and  without  the  aid  of  a  sword,  has  de- 
stroyed mo.  O  my  son,  prove  that  you  have  been  born  my 
genuine  son,  and  do  not  pay  too  much  reverence  to  the  name 
of  a  mother :  taking  your  mother  by  force  from  the  hous'e, 
give  her  into  my  hands,  that  I  may  clearly  know  whether  you 
Avill  more  pity  her  fate  than  mine,  when  you  see  her  mangled 
body  punished  with  justice.  Come,  my  son,  dare  this  deed, 
and  pity  me,  the  object  of  pity  to  many,  v/ho,  like  a  girl,  have 
howled  and  wept;  and  this  no  mortal  can  say  that  he  ever 
saw  me  do  before  ;  but  without  a  groan  I  met  my  misfortunes. 
Now,  in  place  of  such  a  stern  character,  I  am  found  to  be  a 
v/eak  woman.  Approaching  now,  stand  near  your  father,  and 
see  by  what  a  calamity  I  endure  these  sufferings ;  for  I  will 
show  them  uncovered.  Lo !  here  behold  ye  all  this  wretched 
body ;  look  on  me,  ill-fated  wretch,  in  Avhat  a  pitiable  condi- 
tion I  am !  Ah  !  ah !  Avoe  is  me  !  alas !  alas !  Tlie  convul- 
sion of  my  agony  is  again  burning ;  again  it  thrills  through 
my  sides,  nor  do  the  gnawings  of  the  wretched  disease  appear 
likely  to  leave  me  at  rest.  O  king  Pluto,  receive  me!  O 
lightning  of  Jove,  strike  me  !  Brandish,  O  monarch  of  the 
sky ;  hurl,  O  father,  the  bolt  of  thy  thunder !  For  it  revels 
on  me  again ;  it  has  burst  out,  it  has  rushed  forth  upon  me. 
O  shoulders  and  breast !  O  my  dear  arms !  are  ye  the  same 
tliat  once  slew  by  your  might  the  lion  tliat  dwelt  in  Nemea, 
scourge  of  the  shepherds,  an  unapproachable  and  terrific  mon- 
ster ;  and  the  Lerna'an  hydra ;  and  the  unconquerable  host 
of  Centaurs,  of  twin  nature,  insolent,  lawless,  and  surpass- 
incf  in  mi^ht ;  and  tlie  Ervmanthiau  boar ;  and  below  the 
earth,  the  triple-headed  dog  of  Orcus,  a  monster  unvanquished 
in  fight,  offspring  of  the  liorrid  Echidna  ;  and  the  dragon  that 
guarded  the  golden  apples  in  the  world's  remotest  regions? 
And  a  thousand  other  toils  I  essayed,  imd  no  one  ever  erec+ed 


1103—1131.]  TRACHINLE.  233 

a  tropliy  in  triumph  over  my  might.  But  now,  thus  disjointed 
and  torn  lo  pieces,  I,  wretched,  am  the  prey  of  this  bUnd  pesti- 
lence ;  I,  Avho  was  said  to  have  sprung  from  a  mother  the  no- 
blest of  all ;  I,  who  was  pronounced  the  son  of  Jove  who  dwells 
amid  the  stars.  But  be  well  assured  of  this  at  least,  that  even 
though  I  am  nothinir,  and  unable  to  move,  I  shall  even  from 
such  feeble  strength  punish  her  who  did  this  deed.  Vrouid 
that  she  might  only  come,  tliat  by  what  she  experienced,  she 
might  be  able  to  announce  to  all,  that  both  in  my  life  and  death, 
1  took  vengeance  on  the  Vv^icked.^ 

Cii.  O  wretched  Greece !  wdiat  a  sorrow  I  foresee  will  be 
yours,  if  at  least  you  be  deprived  of  this  hero. 

Hyl.  Since,  father,  you  give  me  leave  to  reply  to  you,  al- 
though in  pain,  listen  to  me  in  silence ;  for  I  shall  ask  of  you 
what  is  right  to  obtain.  Give  yourself  up  to  me,  but  not  with 
feeliniis  smarting;  under  the  vehemence  of  anirer ;  for  you  can 
not  thus  be  able  to  perceive  how  in  some  things  you  vainly 
desire  to  feel  pleasure,  and  how  in  others  you  are  as  vainly 
pained. 

Her.  Speak  what  you  wish,  and  have  done  ;  since  I,  in  my 
malady,  understand  none  of  those  things  which  you  already 
have  been  refinino;  on. 

Hyl.  I  come  to  tell  of  my  mother,  in  ivhat  circumstances 
she  now  is  placed,  and  in  what  she  sinned  against  her  will. 

Hek.  O  basest  wretch!  have  you  made  mention  of  the 
mother  that  slew  your  father,  in  the  expectation  that  I  should 
listen  ? 

Hyl.  For  the  case  is  such  that  it  is  not  proper  for  me  to  be 
silent. 

Her.  No,  in  truth,  not  that  the  guilt  was  first  committed 
by  her. 

Hyl.  But  you  ^vill  not  say  so  of  the  things  she  has  this  day 
done. 

Her.  Speak ;  but  beware,  lest  you  appear  to  have  been  born 
of  a  base  spirit. 

Hyl.  I  speak  ;  she  has  just  died  by  recent  slaughter. 

Her.  By  whose  hand?  thou  hast  announced  an  evil  por- 
tent. 

1  With  this  sublime  speech  compare  Cicero's  translation,  Tusc.  Qusest. 
II.  8,  and  to  compare  a  very  difiercnt  treatment  of  the  same  subject,  see 
a  blustcrinrr  scene  in  the  fourth  act  of  Seneca's  Hercules'  GEtcEUs. — B. 


2ai  TRACHINL^.  [1132—1167. 

Hyl.  By  her  own,  no  stranger's  hand. 

Her.  Alas!  before,  as  was  fitting,  she  perished  hy  my 
hand. 

Hyl.  Even  your  wrath  would  be  turned  away  if  you  knew 
the  whole. 

IIek.  You  have  begun  a  dreadful  tale;  but  declare  why 
you  thus  think. 

Hyl.  She  erred  in  the  whole  business,  desiring  what  is 
good. 

Hek.  Did  she  do  what  is  good,  O  wretch,  in  murdering  your 
father  ? 

Hyl.  For,  thinking  to  apply  a  love  charm  to  yon,  when  she 
saw  the  new  marriage  within,  she  failed  in  her  purpose. 

Her.  Who,  of  the  Trachinians,  is  so  skilled  in  charms  ? 

Hyl.  Nessus,  the  Centaur  of  old,  persuaded  her  to  inflame 
your  desire  by  this  philtre. 

Her.  Woe,  woe  is  me  unhappy !  I,  wretched,  am  gone.  I 
am  destroyed,  I  am  destroyed  ;  there  exists  no  longer  to  me  the 
light  of  day.  "Woe  is  me  !  I  perceive  to  wiiat  point  of  calam- 
ity I  am  reduced.  G-o,  my  son  ;  for  to  you  there  is  no  longer 
a  father  ;  summon  to  me  all  the  offspring  of  your  brothers,  and 
summon  the  wretched  Alcmena,  in  vain  the  spouse  of  Jove, 
that  ye  may  hear,  from  my  lips,  the  final  prediction  of  oracles, 
as  far  as  I  know. 

Hyl.  But  your  mother  is  not  here ;  for  she  is  gone  to 
Tiryns,  by  the  sea-shore,  to  fix  her  dwelling  there ;  and  of 
your  children,  taking  some  wdth  her,  she  herself  rears  them, 
and  others  of  them,  you  are  to  be  informed,  arc  dwelling  in  the 
city  of  Thebe.  But  we,  O  father,  as  many  as  are  present,  if 
it  be  necessary  to  do  any  thing,  when  we  hear  it,  will  render 
the  service. 

Her.  Do  you  then  hear  what  is  to  be  done  ;  and  you  have 
arrived  at  that  point  wliere  you  shall  show,  being  Avliat  sort  of 
man,  you  are  called  my  son.  For  it  was  predicted  to  me  of 
old,  by  my  father,  that  I  should  not  die  by  any  living  enemy, 
but  by  one  who,  departed  from  life,  should  be  a  dvrellcr  in 
Hades.  This  savage  Centaur,  therefore,  according  to  the  di- 
vine annunciation,  though  in  death,  destroys  my  life.  And 
I  will  show  you  nevv'  oracles,  harmonizing  with  those  of  ancient 
date,  and  having  a  corresponding  issue  ;  whicli,  entering  tlic 
grove  of  the  Selli,  whose  home  is  the  mountain,  and  wliose 


1168—1197.]  TRACHINLE.  235 

coucli  the  ground,  I  Avrote  dovm  as  they  were  delivered  from 
the  vocal  oak,  inspired  by  my  lather.  Its  voice  announced  to 
me,  that  at  this  time  now  actually  present,  there  should  be 
consummated  to  me  a  release  from  the  toils  imposed  on  me  ; 
and  I  deemed  that  I  should  live  in  prosperity  ;  but  this  sig- 
nified nothing  else  but  that  I  should  die.  For  to  the  dead  no  V 
toil  arises.  Since  then,  my  son,  the  issue  of  these  prophecies 
is  clear,  it  behooves  you  again  to  prove  an  ally  to  me,  and  not 
to  wait  for  my  mouth  to  urge  jou,  but  yielding,  of  your  ovv^n 
accord,  to  assist  me,  having  discovered  the  best  of  laws,  obedi- 
ence to  a  father. 

Hyl.  I  am  alarmed,  O  my  father,  at  hearing  an  address  of 
such  a  nature  ;  but  I  will  obey  you  in  what  seems  good  to 
vou. 

Hek.  First  oive  me  your  ri£>ht  hand. 

Hyl.  For  what  pledge  do  you  make  this  eager  request  ? 

PIer.  Will  you  not  quickly  extend  your  hand,  and  not  prove 
disobedient  to  me  ? 

Hyl.  Lo,  I  extend  it,  and  no  objection  shall  be  made  by  me. 

Her.  Swear  now  by  the  head  of  Jove,  my  father. 

Hyl.  That  I  Avill  do  what? — and  this  oath  shall  be  pro- 
nounced. 

Her.  That  you  will  perform  the  deed  enjoined  by  me. 

PIyl.  I  swear  ;  calling  Jove  to  ^\dtness. 

Her.  If  you  transgress  your  oath,  pray  that  you  may  receive 
punishment. 

Hyl.  I  shall  not  receive  it ;  for  I  Avill  do  what  you  com- 
mand ;  yet  still  I  imprecate  the  curse. 

Her.  Knowest  thou,  then,  the  highest  cliff  of  G^ta,  sacred 
to  Jove  ? 

Hyl.  I  know  it,  having  often,  as  a  sacrificer,  at  least,  stood 
on  its  summit. 

PIer.  Thither  it  is  now  fitting  that  you  bear  my  body,  with 
your  own  hands,  and  with  the  aid  of  such  friends  as  you 
choose ;  and  having  cut  down  many  a  bough  of  the  deep- 
rooted  oak,  and  many  a  trunk  of  the  male^  wild  olive,  cast  my 

^  "  Oleastri  mares,  non  feminED  intelliguntur,  defendandumque  potivis 
^st  Ovidii  urc  mares  oleas.  Fast.  iv.  741,  quam  probandum  quod  ab  cniea- 
datoribus  profectura  codices  niulti  habent,  mans  rorcm.'' — Herm.  A\'un- 
der  has  bracketed  vss.  1195-8,  which  is  his  usual  method  v,'ith  v/hatcver 
he  can  not  understand. — B. 


23G  TRACI-IINLE.  [11S8— I23l 

body  on  the  pile ;  and  having  taken  the  blazing  pitchy  torch, 
set  it  on  fire.^  But  let  neither  groan  nor  tear  have  vent;  but 
v/itliout  lamentation  or  weeping,  if  you  are  the  son  of  this 
man,  fultiU  your  ta.sk.  But  if  you  do  not,  I  await  you,  and 
even  though  I  be  below  the  earth,  you  shall  ever  be  loaded 
with  my  curses. 

Hyl.  Oh  me !  my  father,  Avhat  words  hast  thou  uttered  ?  to 
what  deeds  dost  thou  compel  me  ? 

Her.  What  must  be  done  :  if  not,  be  the  son  of  some  other, 
nor  be  called  my  son  any  longer. 

Hyl.  Woe  is  me !  still  more  again.  To  what  a  deed,  oh  fa- 
ther, do  you  excite  m.e,  to  become  your  murderer  and  execu- 
tioner ! 

Hek.  Ko,  in  truth,  I  do  not ;  but  to  bo  the  healer  and  only 
physician  of  the  evils  I  suffer. 

Hyl.  But  how  shall  I  heal  your  body  by  consuming  it  in 
the  flames  ? 

PIek.  If  you  shrink  from  this,  perform  at  least  the  rest. 

Hyl.  There  shall  be  no  unwillingness  at  least  to  bear  you. 

PIer.  Will  there  also  be  a  sufhcient  heaping-up  of  the  pyi-e 
I  have  described  ? 

Hyl.  In  so  far  at  least  as  I  am  able,  so  that  I  do  not  touch 
[the  fire]  with  my  own  hands.  But  I  will  do  the  other  things, 
and  my  part  shall  not  be  behind. 

Her.  Well,  this  will  do.  But,  in  addition  to  these  great 
requests,  grant  me  a  small  favor. 

PIyl.  Even  though  it  be  very  great,  it  shall  be  rendered. 

Her.  Knowest  thou,  in  sooth,  the  daughter  of  Eurytus'? 

PIyl.  You  mean  lole,  if  I  conjecture  aright. 

Her.  You  are  right.  This  charge,  my  son,  I  lay  on  you  ;  if 
you  wish,  in  remembrance  of  the  oaths  pledged  to  your  father, 
to  act  the  part  of  a  pious  son  after  my  death,  take  lole  to  your 
wife,  nor  be  disobedient  to  my  commands.  Let  no  other  man 
but  you  obtain  possession  of  her  v/ho  once  lay  by  my  side  ;  but 
do  you  yourself,  my  son,  make  the  alliance  of  these  nuptials. 
Obey  me ;  for  having  been  obedient  to  me  in  great  matters,  to 
disobey  me  m  small  does  away  v.itli  the  former  favor. 

Hyl.  Ah  me !  it  is  wrona;  to  cive  way  to  an2;er  airainst  one 
in  this  distress;  but  yet  who  could  endure  to  see  him  have 
sentiments  like  these  ? 

^  "Nemo  mc  lacrymis  dccorct,  aut  funcra  faxit  Fiendo."' — Ennius. — B 


1232— 1231.  j  TRACKIi\LE.  237 

IIek.  Do  you  murmur,  as  about  to  refuse  to  do  any  of  the 
filings  I  request? 

IIyi..  But  who  Avouid  ever,  since  she  alone  was  the  cause  of 
my  mother's  death,  and  to  you  also  of  the  state  to  wdiich  you 
are  reduced ;  who,  I  say,  that  is  not  persecuted  to  madness  by 
the  furies,  would  choose  her  for  a  wife?  It  is  better  for  me, 
oh  father,  to  die  than  to  dwell  with  those  who  are  most  hate- 
lui  to  my  soul. 

Her.  It  seems  that  this  man  is  not  going  to  pay  duty  to  me 
in  death  ;  but  the  curses  of  heaven  await  you  if  you  prove  dis- 
obedient to  my  commands. 

Hyl.  Alas !  you  will  soon,  methinks,  perceive  how  you  are 
affected  by  disease. 

PIek.  For  you  again  rouse  me  from  the  evils  which  slum- 
bered. 

PIy'L.  Wretched  man  that  I  am  !  how  I  am,  in  many  points, 
at  a  loss ! 

Her.  For  you  disdain  to  obey  a  father. 

Hyl.  But  shall  I  teach  myself,  O  father,  to  act  an  impious 
part  ? 

Her.  There  is  no  impiety,  if  you  give  pleasure  to  my  heart. 

Hye.  Bo  you  com.mand  me,  then,  justly  to  perform  these 
thin2;s? 

Her.  I  do  ;  I  call  the  gods  to  witness. 

Hye.  I  will  therefore  obey,  and  no  longer  refuse,  having 
made  it  manifest  to  the  gods  that  this  is  your  deed.  For  I 
shall  never  appear  base,  O  father,  acting  at  least  in  obedience 
to  your  commands. 

Her.  You  conclude  well ;  and,  in  addition  to  this,  make, 
O  my  son,  your  favor  speedy,  so  that,  before  any  torture,  or 
pang  assail  you,  jou  may  place  me  on  the  pyre.  Come,  exert 
yourselves,  raise  me  up  :  my  respite  from  evils  is  the  final  close 
of  my  life. 

Hye.  But  tliere  is  no  obstacle  for  these  things  to  be  ac- 
complisiicd  for  you,  since,  father,  you  command  and  compel 
me. 

Her.  Come  now,  my  stern  spirit,  before  this  disease  be 
awakened;  sl^ow^ng  a  <?tone  set  bit  of  steel, ^  and  restrain  1am- 

^  Sec  Hcmiaim  «5  tjQ'C  in  his  last  ed.  and  Liddcil's  Lex.  s.  v.  ?uOo- 


238  TRACHINLE.  [1262—1278. 

entation,  as  accomplishing^  this  deed,  thougli  involuntary,  as  a 
deed  of  joy. 

IIyl.  KiiisG  him  up,  ye  attendants,  greatly  forgiving  me  for 
these  deeds,  and  being  sensible  of  the  great  injustice  of  the 
gods,  v/ho,  though  they  gave  him  being,  and  are  called  his  fa- 
thers, can  endure  to  look  on  these  suiierings.  The  future,  in- 
deed, no  one  foresees;  but  the  events  now  present  arc  lament- 
able to  us,  and  disgraceful  to  them,  .and  most  bitter  to  him,  of 
a;l  men,  who  endures  this  visitation,  xsor  do  thou,  O  damsel, 
remain  at  home,  having  seen  these  recent  deaths  of  tl^.e  michtv, 
and  these  many  sufferings  o-f  imv/onted  affliction  ;  and  nought 
is  there  of  these  which  the  hand  of  Jove  liatli  not  wroujiht. 

^  Sec  Hermann. — B. 


1-8.2 


A  J  A  X. 


Ajax,  having  been  deprived  of  the  arms  of  Achilles,  which  were  award- 
ed to  Ulysses  by  the  Grecian  Assembly,  in  a  fit  of  madness  slaughtered 
the  herds  of  the  Greeks,  mistaking  them  for  the  persons  of  the  Atridse. 
On  discovering  his  mistake,  he  in  despair  determines  to  slay  himself, 
and  the  play  concludes  with  his  burial,  which  Ulysses  advocates,  con- 
trary to  the  wishes  of  Agamemnon. — B. 


DRAMATIS  PERSON.^. 


^MlXERVA. 

Ulysses. 

Ajax. 

Chorus  of  Sala:\iin'ians. 

Tecmessa. 


Messenger. 

Teucer. 

Menelaus. 

Agamemnon'. 


Minerva.  Ever,  son  of  Laertes,  have  I  observed  thee  Liint- 
ing  after  some  attempt  on  thy  foes  to  snatch  at  it,^  and  now  I 
sec  thee  at  the  marine  pavilion  of  Ajax,  %Yhere  he  holds  his 
post  the  last,-  long  since  tracking  him  as  thy  prey,  and  meas- 
urins  his  frcshlv  ^rraven  foot-pnnts,  that  thou  mavest  discover 
whether  he  be  within,  or  not  witliin.  "Well  does  thy  track,  of 
scent  sagacious  as  the  Spartan  brach's,^  lead  thee  forth,  for  the 

^  'Aprvdaai.  This  expression  is  considered  by  Musgrave  as  synony- 
mous v.ith  the  vipapTzaaai  and  ^vvapTTdcai  of  Aristophanes,  Nub.  V.  v.  490, 
773.  Lobcck,  however,  quotes  Piutarch  in  support  of  his  opinion,  that 
it  bears  here  the  same  meaning  with  the  "  auras  captare"  of  the  Latins. 

^  E'en  Ajax  and  Achilles  heard  the  sound, 

Whose  ships,  remote,  the  guarded  navy  bound. 

Pope's  Iliad,  13 .  XI.  v.  II. 

See  also  Eurip.  Iph.  x\ul.  292.  The  lonely  situation  of  Ajax  on  the  beach, 
chosen  by  hi;n  v.hen  he  was  j/voptri  Tziavvor  nal  luiprei  ;\;eipcJv,  is  beauti- 
fully alluded  to  here,  where  it  forms  so  appropriate  a  stage  for  the  exhi- 
bition of  his  unfriended  solitude  and  desolation  of  heart. 

^  The  dogs  of  Sparta  arc  noticed  by  Virsil  for  tlseir  swiftness.  G.  iii. 
405  ;  whicli  nualitv  Shakesncare  has  remarked  in  his  Midsummer  Nioht's 
Dream,  and  elsewhere  speaks  of  them  in  a  passage  perhaps  yet  more  ap- 
plicable to  Ulysses  : 


210  A  J  AX.  [9—39. 

man  chances  just  now  to  be  within,  his  liead  and  murderous 
h.ands  dripping  with  sweat.  And  tliere  is  no  need  for  thee 
any  longer  to  peer  within  this  his  gate,  but  to  declare  for  what 
cause  thou  hast  bestowed  this  anxious  toil,  that  thou  mayest 
learn  of  me  that  know.^ 

Ulysses.  O  voice  of  Minerva,  mj  best-beloved  of  deities, 
hov»^  v/ell  known  do  I  hear,  and  grasp  with  my  mind,  even 
thougli  thou  be  unseen,  thy  voice,  like  that  of  the  brazen- 
throated  Tuscan  trump  I'^  And  now  thou  art  rightly  advised, 
that  I  walk  about,  looking  after  mine  enemy,  Ajax  the  shield- 
bearer,  for  him,  and  none  other,  I  all  tliis  Avhile  am  tracking. 
For  on  this  very  night  hath  he  worked  us  a  v>Tong  unlooked 
for,"^  if  indeed  'tis  he  hath  done  this;^  for  we  know  nothing 
certain,  but  are  at  fault ;  and  I  have  yoked  me  voluntarily  to 
this  trouble.  We  found  but  nov,^  our  captive  herds  all  de- 
stroyed, and  butchered  out  of  hand,  they,  and  the  guardians 
of  the  flocks  themselves ;  so  each  one  lays  the  charge  at  Ajax' 
door.  And  to  me  a  watchman,  tliat  espied  him  bounding 
over  the  plains  alone,  with  freshly-reeking  sword,  tells  it,  antl 
hath  made  it  known  ;  so  forthwith  I  hurry  close  on  his  steps, 
and  of  part  I  have  proof,  but  in  part  I  am  tlirovrn  out,  and 
can  not  learn  whose  they  are.^  But  in  season  art  thou  come ; 
for  in  all  things,  both  past  (thou  knowest)  and  to  come,  am, I 
piloted  by  thy  hand. 

Mix.  I  know  it,  Ulysses  ;  and  long  since  came  I  forth  upon 
thy  path,  a  zealous  guardian  to  thee  in  thy  hunt. 

Ul.  And  do  I,  dear  mistress,  toil  to  j)urpose  ? 

Mix-  Yes,  since  these  deeds  are  his,  be  sure. 

0  Spartan  dog, 

More  fell  than  hunger,  anguish,  or  the  sea ! 
Look  on  the  tragic  loading'  of  this  bed  : 
This  is  thy  work. — Othello,  act  5,  scene  the  last. 
*■  This  rr^7  be  rendered,  "  that  what  I  know,  and  thou  wouldst  learn, 
thoa  mayest." 

"  KwA.)!',  strictly  speaking,  is  the  bcU  or  broad  part  of  the  trumpet. 
That  called  the  Tuscan  (by  Athenffius,  KeK/.ac/itvov),  from  its  many  wind- 
ings, produced  a  louder  tone. 

'  As  in  the  monstrous  grasp  of  their  conception 

Defy  all  codes  to  image  or  to  name  them. — Doge  of  Venice. 
*  llipya/yTai,  in  Sophocles,  is  always  used  actively.     CEd.  Tyr.  279  ; 
Am.  747. 

8  ''Otcv,  tlm  subaud.     Sec  Antigone,  v.  318  ;  Ajax,  103. 


40— Gi).j  AJAX.  241 

IJl.  And  to  what  inconceivable  purpose  Lath  he  thus  in 
fuiy  set  his  hand  ?  ^ 

Mix.   O'ercharfrcd  Avith  indi-znation  about  Achilles'  arms. 

Ul.  Why  then  hurries  he  this  inroad  on  the  ilocks  ? 

]MiN.  Fancying  that  in  you  he  stains  his  hand  with  murder. 

Ul.  What !  "was  this  plot  of  his  devised  as  against  the  Ar- 
gives  ? 
J     Mix.  Ay,  and  he  had  accomplished  it  had  I  been  careless. 

Ul.  AVitli  what  such  bold  attempts,  and  rashness  of  soul  ? 

Mix.  At  night ;  alone,  he  traitorously  sallies  forth  against 
you. 

Ul.  How  ?  was  he  close  upon  us,  and  reached  he  the  goal  ? 

Mix.  Yes,  he  was  even  at  the  gates  of  the  two  generals. 

Ul.  And  how  checked  he  his  hand,  ravenous  of  murder? 

IMix.  I  bar  him  of  his  cureless  joy,  haA^ing  cast  before  his 
eyes  intolerable  fancies,^  and  tarn  him  aside  on  the  flocks, 
and  mingled  multitude  of  prey,  the  herdsmen's  yet  unparted 
care.  There,  falling  on,  he  mowed  down  many  a  horned 
slaughter,  hewino;  dovv^n  all  around  him,  and  deemed  at  one 
time  he  held  and  slev/  with  his  own  hand  the  two  Atridie, 
and  then,  one  here,  another  there,  of  the  chieftains,  assaulting 
them :  while  I  was  urging  on,  and  entrammeling  in  evil 
snares,  the  man,  phrensied  with  mad  distemperature.  And 
afterward  again,  when  he  rested  from  this  butchery,^  having 
bound  together  with  chains  those  of  the  oxen  that  survived, 
and  all  the  flocks,  he  conveys  them  to  his  dvv'elling,  as  having 
men  and  not  a  horned  spoil,  and  is  now  scourging  them  fet- 
tered at  home.  Nay,  I  will  also  show  thee  this  his  sickness 
most  manifest,  that  having  witnessed  thou  mayest  noise  it 
abroad  to  all  the  Greeks.  But  tany  vath  firmness,  nor  look 
for  harm  from   the  man;*^    for  I  will   obstruct  the  averted 

^  This  US3  of  ths  verb  alaoo)  is  objected  to  by  Ruhnken,  who  has 
altered  it  in  two  places  of  Euripides,  where  it  occurs  in  an  active  sense. 
Lobeck,  however,  defends  it  by  a  sunilar  idiom  in  the  words  TraZ/^fv, 
dtvelv,  dod^Eiv,  etc. 

^  TviJjuat  sunt  hoc  loco  ludibria  oculorum,  specie  terribilia,  ad  deflec- 
tendum  ab  proposito  itinera  Ajacem. — Lobeck.  Who  also,  on  the  au- 
thority of  Suidas,  objects  to  Musgrave's  propo.sed  reading,  y/iVfiag. 

^  Lobeck  reads  TTO'jav,  and  observes  that  the  eypression,  as  it  stands  in 
Brunck,  is  never  u.sed  but  as  applied  to  those  '*  aui  a  ctede  et  certamine 
diuturno  quietem  habent." 

*  Literally,  "nor  receive  the  man  as  a  calamity."  Hermann  very 
positively  asserta  that  fiifive  can  not  be  taken  with  tov  uvdpaS'' 

1^ 


242  AJAX.  [70—90. 

glances  of  his  eyes  from  looking  on  thy  presence.^  IIo! 
tiiou.  Thcc,  that  art  fitting  in  chastisement  thy  captives' 
hands  with  bonds,  I  bid  come  to  me.  Ajax,  I  say,  come  out 
before  thine  abode. 

Ul.  What  didst  thou,  Minerva?  by  no  means  call  him  out 

JNIiN.  Wilt  thou  not  keep  silence,  nor  cherish  cowardice? 

Ul.  Nay,  by  heaven,  content  thee  that  he  stay  within. 
1    Mix.  Lest  what  should  happen?     Was  he  not  a  man  fo:- 
rierly  ?- 

Ul.  Mine  enemy,  I  grant,  and  even  now. 

Mix.  And  is  not  that  the  most  grateful  laugh  which  we  in* 
dulse  on  our  foes? 

Ul.  For   my   part,  I   am    satisfied   that    he    stay   within 
doors. 

Mix.  Dreadest  thou  to  look  on  a  man  most  evidently 
frantic  ?^ 

Ul.  I  ne'er  had  avoided  him,  through  dread,  while  in  his 
senses.'^ 

Mix.  Nor  fear  that  he  shall  now  behold  thee,  thoua:li  close 
by  him. 

Ul.  How  not,  if,  at  least,  he  looks  with  the  same  eyes? 

Mix.  I  will  darken  his  eyes,  although  they  see. 

Ul.  Any  thing  may  be,  when  a  god  is  the  framer. 

Mix.  Stand,  now,  in  silence,  and  continue  as  thou  art. 

Ul.  I  will  continue,  but  I  had  rather  have  been  elsewhere. 

Mix.  Ho  !  ho !  Ajax !  A  second  time  I  call  thee  to  me. 
Why  hast  thou  so  little  respect  for  thine  ally  ? 

*  This  is  supposed  ])y  Lobeck  to  have  been  all  copied  by  Sophocles 
from  the  Iliad  of  Lesches,  a  Lesbian  poet,  whose  work  is  mentioned  by 
Pausanias. 

^  Musgrave  considers  uvT^p,  as  used  in  this  passage,  Kar'  t^oxyv.  Lo- 
beck, with  more  reason,  understands  it,  "  Was  he  more  than  man  before 
now  1" 

^  Ulysses  is  here  somewhat  lowered  in  the  eyes  of  the  audience  ;  but 
this  is  in  accordance  with  the  spirit  which  made  the  sons  in  the  group  of 
Laocoon  disproportionately  small,  to  increase  the  eifect  of  the  principal 
figure.  What  are  we  to  ima<nne  that  madness,  which  could  render  thq 
assured  protection  of  a  mighty  goddess  insufficient  to  encourage  a  war> 
rior  to  look  on  it  1 

*  Ulysses  speaks  the  sense  of  Aristotle  here,  who  in  his  seventh  boot 
observes,  that  though  a  bad  man  be  far  worse  than  a  wild  beast,  the  lat; 
ter  is  more  terrible,  being  irrational. 


91—115]  AJAX.  243 

Ajax.  Minerva,  liail,  0  hail,  thou  child  of  Jove.  How  for* 
tunatc  thy  presence  here  !  I  will  crown  thee,  too,  with  trophies 
all-goldeD,  in  requital  of  this  my  spoil. 

Mix.  Well  hast  thou  said ;  but  tell  me  this,  hast  thou  well 
Lathed  thy  sword  in  the  Argives'  host  ? 

Aj.  'Tis  mine  to  boast,  and  I  will  not  deny  [and  say]  I  did 
not  the  deed.i 

Mix.  And  hast  thou  armed  thine  hand  against  the  Atri- 

Aj.  Ay,  so  as  that  they  shall  never  more  dishonor  Ajax. 

Mix.  The  men  arc  dead,  as  I  understand  thy  speech. 

Aj.  Being  dead,  now  let  them  rob  me  of  my  arms. 

Mix.  "Well,  and  what  then  of  Laertes'  son?  How  stands 
he  to  thee  in  fortune  ?  has  he  escaped  thee  ? 

Aj.  Question  you  me  of  that  rascal  fox,  Avhere  he  is'?^ 

Mix.  I  do  :  Ulysses,  thy  rival,  I  mean. 

Aj.  O  queen,  he  sits  my  most  v^-eicome  prisoner  within. 
For  I  would  in  no  wise  have  him  die  yet. 

Mix.  Ere  thou  shalt  do  what,  or  reap  vdiat  farther 
gain  ? 

Aj.  Ere,  bound  to  the  column  of  my  halFs  dome — ^ 

jSIix.  ^Miat  ill,  I  pray,  wilt  tliou  work  the  miserable 
man  ? 

Aj.  His  back  first  purpled  with  the  scourge,*  he  shall 
die. 

Mix.  Nay,  do  not  thus,  at  least,  torture  the  wretch. 

Aj.  Minerva,  in  the  rest  I  concede  that  thou  be  pleased, 
but  he  shall  pay  this  my  penalty  and  no  other. 

Mix.  Do  thou  then,  since  this  it  is  thy  pleasure  to  do,  uso 
thine  hand,  spare  to  do  nought  of  that  thou  purposest. 

^  This  form  is  constantly  used  by  Thucydides  ;  see  L.  I.  c.  73. 

^  Although  Minerva  was  hostile  to  Ajax,  yet  to  have  revenged  herself 
by  these  means  would  have  been  undignified,  she  therefore  tells  us  that 
it  v.as  to  save  the  Greek  army  she  deluded  his  eyes  with  these  phantoms. 
Thus,  by  her  natural  interference,  the  two  great  enemies  are  brought  on 
the  stage  together,  x\jax  not  recognizing  his  foe,  and  our  pity  for  Ajax 
raised  to  its  highest  pitch  by  the  contrast. — Hermann. 

^  This  was  a  common  custom  ;  and  is  described  by  Homer  in  the  Odys- 
sey, 13.  22,  as  the  punishment  of  Melanthius,  who  fares  much  the  same 
with  Sir  Topaz,  in  Parnell's  Fairy  Tale. 

For  a  description  of  the  chieftains'  tents  at  Troy,  see  the  last  book  of 
the  Iliad. 

-  Hence  the  title  of  this  tragedy. 


244  AJAX.  tn'>— i55 

A  J.  I  go  to  my  work ;  but  tliis  I  charge  tliee  -with,  that 
thou  be  ever  on  my  side  an  assistant  such  as  now. 

Mix.  Thou  seest,  Ulysses,  the  might  of  gods,  how  great  it  is. 
AVhom  found  you  ever,  either  more  provident  to  counsel,  oi' 
more  brave  to  act  in  time  of  need  than  this  man  ? 

Ul.  I  know  of  none ;  and  thougii  he  be  mine  enemy,  I  yet 
compassionate  him,  thus  wretched,  for  that  he  hath  been  yoked 
to  grapple  v/itli  a  dreadful  calamity,^  considering  no  more  his 
fortune  than  mine  own  ;  for  I  see  that  all  we  who  are  alive, 
ai'e  nothing  else  but  phantoms  or  unreal  shadows. 

MiN.  Since  then  thou  seest  it  is  so,  look  that  thyself  never 
utter  a  prideful  word  against  tlie  gods,  nor  assume  aught  of 
vanity,  if  thou  outweigliest  any  one,  either  in  valor  or  depth 
of  plenteous  wealth ;  sinoe  a  day  sinks  and  restores  again  [to 
light]  all  human  things.  But  the  modest  the  gods  love,  and 
abhor  the  wicked.- 

Chokus.  Son  of  Telamon,  that  swayest  the  eminence  of 
«ca-girt  Salamis,  that  neighbors  the  main  land,  over  thee 
when  faiing  well  I  joy ;  but  when  a  stroke  from  Jupiter,  or 
malignant  evil  rumor  from  the  Greeks  assails  thee,  I  have 
great  alarm,  and  shudder,  like  the  glance  of  a  fluttering  dove. 
Even  as  on  the  night  that  now  hath  waned,  great  clamors, 
tending  to  infamy,  beset  us ;  that  thou,  having  rushed  forth 
to  the  meadow,  the  courser's  joy,^  hast  destroyed  the  herds 
and  booty  of  the  Greeks,  all  that  yet  was  left  their  lances* 
prize,  slaughtering  them  with  flashing  steel.  Such  whispered 
words  as  these  Ulysses  forging*  cames  to  the  ear  of  all,  and 
flrmly  convinces  them  ;  since  now  he  tells  a  tale  of  thee,  most 
plausible,  and  every  one  that  hears  is  yet  more  delighted  than 
the  toller,  at  insolently  triumphing  in  thy  sorrows.  For 
wdioso  launches  his  bolt  at  noble  persons,^  could  not  miss: 

'  This  is  precisely  Aristotle's  idea:  "  For  it  evidently  is  necessary  that 
a  person  likely  to  feel  pity  should  be  actually  such  as  to  deem  that  either 
in  his  own  person,  or  of  sonic  one  connected  with  him,  he  may  suffer 
some  evil."— Ilhet.  B.  11.  c.  8. 

^  For  similar  sentiments  compare  the  second  strophe  of  the  fourth 
Chorus  in  ffidipus  Tyrannus. 

^  Hermann  translates  iTrrrojiiavT,',  cquis  luximans,  i.  e.  ahnndans. 

*  Virgil  has  not  forjrottcn  this  characteristic  of  Ulysses.      See  the 
Eneid,  B-  II.  v.  97,  1G4. 

*  Omne  animi  vitium  tanto  conspcctius  in  se 
Crimen  habct,  quanto  major,  qui  peccat,  habetur. 


156—190.]  AJAX.  245 

but  were  any  one  to  bring  this  charge  against  mc,  he  would 
not  be  believed;  since  envy  cravv^ls  on  toward  the  master. 
And  yet  the  mean,  v\dthout  tlie  great,  are  but  a  slippery  de- 
fense to  a  tower;  for  the  low  united  to  the  oreat,  and  the 
great  by  means  of  his  inferiors,  might  best  be  supported. 
But  'tis  impossible  to  foreteach  the  senseless  opinions  on  this. 
By  such  men  art  thou  clamored  against,  and  we  have  not 
strength  to  make  head  against  all  this,  O  prince,  without  thy 
aid.  No,  for  when  now  they  have  escaped  thine  eye,  they 
clatter  like  flocks  of  birds ;  but  shrinking  in  terror  from  the 
mighty  vulture,  voiceless,  perhaps  they  would  all  on  a  sudden 
cower  in  silence,  wert  thou  to  appear.  Full  surely  did  the 
bull-hunting  Diana, ^  daughter  of  Jove  [oh  wide  report !  oh 
mother  of  my  shame !],  incite  thee  ap-ainst  the  public  droves 
of  oxen  ;  either  haply  as  sx,  requital  of  some  victory  to  her 
fruitless,  or  cheated  of  her  present  of  illustrious  spoils,  for 
some  stricken  deer  for  which  she  received  no  dft.  Or  it 
might  be  the-  brazen  breast-plated  Enyalius,  having  some 
complaint  in  behalf  of  his  aiding  spear,"  that  by  nightly  de- 
vices avenged  for  himself  the  wrong.  For,  surely,  thou 
couidst  never,  son  of  Telamon,  intentionally  have  assayed  a 
purpose  so  sinister,  assaulting  the  flocks;  ye^.  a  disease  from 
heaven  might  ^dsit  thee :  but  may  Jove  and  Anollo  avert  the 
evil  slander  of  the  Greeks.  If,  however,  the  mighty  princa^ 
are  by  stealth  suborning  these  fables,^  or  any  of  Sispvh'W 

See  also  Aristotle's  Rhet.  B.  II.  c.  10. 

If  I  am  traduced  by  tongues,  which  neither  know 

My  faculties  nor  person,  yet  will  be 

The  chronicles  of  my  doing — let  me  say 

'Tis  but  the  fate  of  place. — Keniy  VIII.  Act  1,  sc.  2. 

^  Thus  Lobeck  gives  it.  Brunck  trrns'ates  it  '-'•  tauris  vccta.''^  Mus- 
grave's  idea  would  make  Sophocles  guilty  of  an  anachronism.  "  Concur 
susque  matronarum  in  templum  Dians,  quam  Tauropolon  vocant,  ad  spew 
exposcendum  fieret." — Liv.  xliv.  c.  44. 

^  Musgrave  translates  this,  "  ultus  est  contumdiam  hastes  auxiliatrici 
sua  illatam.''''  Hermann,  reading  el  riv',  observes  that  as  Mars  was  a 
friend  to  the  opposite  party,  this  expression  is  well  adapted  to  a  person 
very  much  in  doubt  if  the  spear  of  Mars  could  ever  have  consorted  with 
that  of  Ajax. 

^  The  Scholia  mention  that  Anticlea,  mother  of  Ulysses,  was  violated 
by  Sisyphus,  on  her  v/ay  to  her  betrothed  husband  Laertes  ;  and  add,  that 
it  was  with  the  connivance  of  her  father  Autolycus,  who  had  been  detected 
in  stealing  some  property  from  Sisyphus. 


24(j  AJAX^  [191—221 

abandoned^  race,  do  not,  do  not  my  king,  any  longer  thus,  keep- 
ing tiiine  eye  fixed  Avithin  thy  tent  on  the  shore,  receive  the 
ill  repoi't.  But  rise  from  the  seat,  where  long  since  thou  art 
rooted  in  long  rest  from  warlike  action,  inflaming  thine  heav- 
en-sent plague :  while  the  insolence  of  thine  enemies  thus 
fearless  in  speeding  amid  the  breezy  glens ;  and  all  are  griev- 
ously scoffing  with  their  tongues,  but  on  me  sorrow  hath  set- 
tled. 

Tecmessa.  Defenders  of  the  ship  of  Ajax,  of  lineage  from 
the  earth-born  Erectheida?,-  we  have  cause  to  mourn  with 
groans,  who  from  afar  are  w^ell-wishcrs  to  the  house  of  Tela- 
mon  ;  for  now  the  terrible,  the  mighty,  stout-shouldered  Ajax 
is  lying  diseased  with  tempestuous  fury. 

Ch.  How  has  this  night  changed  the  burden  of  the  day-time? 
Child  of  Teleutas  the  Phrygian,  speak,  since  the  ardent  Ajax, 
dearly  loving  thee,  honors  thy  captive  bed,-^  and  thus  thou 
wouldst  not  ignorantly  hint  at  aught. 

Tec.  How,  then,  shall  I  speak  a  tale  unspeakable  ?  for  thou 
wilt  hear  a  calamity  terrible  as  death,  since  our  illustrious  Ajax, 
seized  with  phrensy,  hath  this  night  been  degraded.  Such 
butchery,  Aveltering  in  gore,  the  slaughter  of  his  hand,  mayest 
thou  now  see  within,  the  victims*  of  that  man. 

Ch.  What  tidings  hast  thou  disclosed,  insupportable,  yet 
unavoidable,  of  the    fiery   warrior  —  tidings    spread    abroad 

^  For  the  use  and  abuse  of  the  word  uccjrog,  see  Aristotle's  Eth.  B.  4. 

^  A  political  stroke  to  please  the  Athenians,  derived  probably  from  the 
tradition  of  the  -'Eacida?  passing  over  to  Salamis  from  ^Egina,  which  be- 
longed to  Attica.  Aristotle,  Rhet.  1,  15,  alludes  to  a  dispute  between 
Athens  and  Megara  respecting  their  title  to  Salamis,  which  the  Atheni- 
ans proved  by  citing  these  verses  from  Homer's  Catalogue  : 

Ala^  6'  Ik  'Za?Mfih'og  uyev  dvoKaldeica  vijag, 
'Eryae  6'  uyuv,  Iv'  'Adijvacuv  iaravTO  (^dXayyeg. 

Which  second  line  Quintiiian  asserts  not  to  have  been  found  in  every 
edition,  and  Laertius  (in  Solone)  mentions  a  report  of  Solon's  having  in- 
terpolated Homer  in  this  place.  It  is  certain,  however,  that  when  Ciis- 
Ihenes  the  Alcma^onid  changed  the  names  of  the  Athenian  tribes  into  ap- 
pellations derived  from  indigenous  heroes,  Ajax  alone  of  foreign  extrac- 
tion was  admitted  to  this  honor,  and  the  tribe  Aiantis  was  called  after 
him.     Herod.  5,  67. 

'         Movit  Ajacem  Telamonc  natum 

Forma  captivs  dominum  Tecmessa). — Hor.  Lib.  II.  Od.  iv.  1,  5. 

*  ;i-p77crr7/pm,  ra  6Le<^0apui:va  TcoLixvia'  Trapd,  to  diaxprjaaaOat  aira. 
^Schol.— 13. 


225—258.]  A  J  AX.  247 

among  tliG  Greek  chieftains  already,  wliicli  wide  report  exag= 
ge rates!  Ah  me,  I  fear  the  approaching  ilL^  Too  phiinly 
will  the  hero  fall  by  his  phrensy-stricken  hand,  having  slaugh- 
tered with  dark  sword  at  once  the  cattle  and  the  herds- 
men.^ 

Tec.  Ah  me !  'twas  thence,  then,  thence  he  came  bringing 
U3  tlie  fettered  flock  ;  of  wdiich  some  he  was  butchering  on  the 
ground  within,  and  others  he  was  rending  asunder,  hewing 
open  their  sides.  But  having  chosen  out  two  white-footed 
rams,  he  lops  ofi  and  throws  away  the  head  and  tip  of  the 
tongue  of  one,^  and  having  tied  the  other  upright  to  pillar,  and 
taken  a  large  horse-binding  halter,  he  lashes  it  with  a  whistling 
double  scourge,  reviling  it  in  shameful  terms,  which  some  god,* 
and  none  of  men,  had  taught  him. 

Cii.  Time  is  it  now  for  one,  having  shrouded  one's  head  in 
a  veil,  to  adopt  a  stealthy  flight  on  foot,  or  seating  him  on  the 
speeding  bench  of  rowing  to  commit  himself  to  the  ocean- 
bounding  bark.^  Such  threats  do  the  Atridse  of  twin  sway  in 
concert  ply  against  us.  I  fear  lest,  stricken,  I  share  the  pain 
of  a  violent  death  by  stoning  with  Ajax,^  whom  an  unapproach- 
able calamity  possesses. 

Tec.  No  longer.  For  as  without  the  blazing  lightning  the 
impetuous  south  wind  rushes  forth,  he  is  calm.'^     And  now, 


1    a 


Qaem  Deus  vult  perdere,  prius  dementat."  Musgrave  thinks  tjie 
word  iTepi(l)avTog  should  be  translated  "  undecunque  maiiifestus,  multis  in- 
iiciis  convictics." 

^  According  to  Musgrave,  the  Greek  here  alludes  to  some  spot  in  the 
plain  of  Troy  called  Hippus.     Hermann  reads  l-rcovufiovg. 

^  The  conduct  of  Fulvia,  wife  of  Antony,  exhibits  a  similar  instance 
Df  revenge,  when  with  a  bodkin  she  pierced  the  tongue  of  the  murdered 
Cicero. 

*  Lobeck  rightly  remarks  that  no  guardian  genius  is  meant,  but  some 
inimical  deity.  The  latest  translator,  Mr.  G.  Burges,  well  renders : 
"  sDoke  bitter  words  and  abusive,  That  a  fury,  not  mortal,  had  taught 
him."— B. 

^  "  Dicere  volebat  Elpeaiav  vat  fieOelvat,  solvere,  i.  e.  liherum  faeerc  re- 
rionim  usum.  Sed  quoniam  addere  volebat  £L,6iJ.evov,  conjunxit  hsec  ita, 
ut  diceret  dohv  elpeGtag  L,vyhv  e^ouevov.  Tantumdem  est  ergo,  ac  si  dix- 
isset  ev  rtj  Oou  i^vyCJ  e^ojievov,  ElpEaiav  fiEOslvai  rij  V7]i. — Herm. 

^  The  Greek  has'  /j.65?.svaTov  upn  Probably  death  in  war,  being  the 
most  noble  (Ar.  Eth.  3),  is  put  for  its  whole  class,  just  as  the  Hoplites 
of  a  Greek  army  stood  for  the  whole  infantry. 

^  '•  In  summer,  when  there  are  thunders  and  lightnings,  thenceforth 


248  AJAX.  [259—287. 

being  sensible,  he  feels  a  fresh  sorrow.  For  to  look  on  suf- 
ferings all  one's  own,  none  other  faring  alike,  suggests  deep 
pangs. 

Cii.  Yet  if  he  be  at  rest,  I  deem  myself  most  fortunate,  for 
of  the  evil  now  vanished  there  is  less  thoug-ht. 

Tec.  Whether  now,  did  any  one  assign  you  the  choice, 
T/ould  you  choose,  afflicting  your  friends,  yourself  to  be  pos- 
sessed of  pleasures,  or  a,  sharer  amid  sharers,  to  sympathize  in 
pain. 

Ch.  The  misery  doubled,  believe  m.c,  lady,  is  the  greater. 

Tec.  Thus  we,  thoush  not  diseased,  are  now  afflicted. 

Cii.  Hov/  hast  thou  said  this  ?  I  know  not  how  thou  mean- 
est. 

Tec.  That  man,  while  he  was  diseased,  was  himself  de- 
lighted vrith  the  woes  in  which  he  was  involved,  but  by  his 
presence  tortured  us  who  were  in  our  senses.  But  now  that 
he  has  ceased,  and  respired  from  his  malady,  both  he  is  all 
racked  with  dreadful  anguish,  and  Vy-e  similarly  no  less  than 
before.  And  are  not  these,  then,  double  ills  from  sin- 
gle? 

Ch.  I  agree  with  you,  and  am  in  fear  least  some  plague 
from  heaven  be  upon  him.  How  should  it  not,  if  when  at 
rest  he  is  not  a  v/hit  more  gladdened  than  when  distem- 
pered  ? 

Tec.  It  needs  thou  be  assured  that  these  things  are 
thus. 

Ch.  For  what  might  be  the  beginning  of  this  evil  that  flew 
upon  him?  Disclose  to  us,  who  sympathize  in  his  misfor- 
tunes. 

Tec.  Thou  shalt  know  the  whole  matter,  as  beinir  a  sharer 
in  it.  For  he,  in  the  dead  of  night,  v/hen  the  evening  lamps 
were  no  longer  burning,^  having  taken  his  two-edged  sword, 
was   eagerly  seeking   to   prowl  through  the   deserted   passes. 

ariso  violent  winds  ;  and  if  the  liprhtnings  be  frequent  and  vivid,  Ihcy  blow 
Vv-illi  greater  fui_v  ;  but  if  it  be  slight  and  seldom,  then  they  are  gentler  ; 
the  contrary  cf  v,-hich  is  the  case  in  autumn  and  winter.'' — Theophrast. 
de  Sign.  Vent.  p.  421.  The  same  fact  is  said  to  take  place  in  the  West 
Indies. 

^  This  ha.g  by  some  been  understood  to  mean  the  stars  ;  but  from  the 
common  mode  of  designating  the  approach  and  close  of  the  night  by  sim- 
ilar c?:pressions  {-tpl  Xvxvov  ucpdc^,  Dionjs.  Hal.  xi.  ;  fJ.vxpi'  /-vxvuv  u<pQv, 
Athen.  xii  ;  "  ad  cxtrcnias  luccrnas,"  Propert.  L.  3,  EL  F),  the  tranclation 


288—318.]  AJAX.  249 

So  I  cliicle  Iiim,  and  say,  "What  dost  tlioii,  Ajax  ?  Why 
unbidden,  nor  summoned  by  messengers,  hurriest  thou  to 
this  attempt,  nor  hearing  any  trumpet '?  Isow  at  least  the 
whole  army  is  asleep."  He  answered  me  with  words  brief, 
but  of  trite  usage.  "  Woman,  to  Avomen  silence  brings  hon- 
or."'^ And  I,  thus  schooled,  desisted,  Avhile  he  rushed  forth 
alone.  And  of  his  sufferings  v/ithout  I  can  not  speak  ;  but 
he  came  in,  bringing  with  him  bulls  tied  together  ;  herdsman's 
dogs,  and  noble  horned  booty.  And  of  some  he  began  to 
break  the  necks ;  others,  turning  them  on  tlieir  backs,  to 
stab  and  cut  through  their  spine  ;  while  others,  enchained, 
would  he  scource,  fallino;  on  the  flocks  as  on  men.  But  at 
last,  bursting  away  through  the  doors,  he  began  to  rant  out 
words  to  some  shadow,-  part  against  the  Atridse,  and  part 
about  Ulysses ;  blendino;  Avith  them  abundance  of  lausfhter, 
with  how  much  of  insult  he  had  ayenged  himself  on  them  in 
this  sally.  And  then,  haying  hurried  back  to  his  abode 
again,  hardly  is  he  at  length  restored  to  his  senses,  I  know 
not  how.  And  when  he  looks  throughout  the  house,  full  of 
destruction,  he  smote  his  head  and  shrieked  aloud ;  and  amid 
the  Avrecks  of  the  carcasses  of  slaughtered  sheep,  he  sat  stretch- 
ed on  the  ground,  rending  mth  clenched  grasp  of  hand  and 
nail  his  hair.  This  time  had  he  sat  the  longest  without  speak- 
ing ;  then  in  dreadful  terms  he  threatened  me,  unless  I  showed 
him  the  whole  calamity  that  had  befallen ;  and  asked  me  in 
v/hat  case  he  could  possibly  be.  So  I,  my  friends,  being 
afraid,  told  him  all  that  had  been  perpetrated,  exactly  as  much 
as  I  knew.  But  he  forthwith  broke  out  into  doleful  shrieks, 
which  neyer  before  had  I  heard  from  him  ;  for  such  laments 

as  it  stands  appears  most  probable.  It  may  be  questioned,  however, 
whether  uKpaq  vvKzoq  means  the  dead  of  night,  or  its  close.  Pindar 
(Isthm.  4)  asserts  that  it  was  in  the  night  that  Ajax  fell  on  his  sword. 

^   "This  is  from  Callistratus  :   'As  leaves  are  an  ornament  to  trees, 
their  fleeces  to  sheep,  their  manes  to  horses,  the  beard  to  men,  so  silence 
is  an  ornament  to  women.'  " — Potter  (from  the  Scholia).     A  similar  sen- 
timent is  put  into  the  mouth  of  Hector,  II.  ^^i.  490.     See  also  Euripides  : 
YvvaiKL  yap  GLyij  rs  Kai  to  cu(ppovelv 

Kd?AlGTOV. 

2  Thus  Aristophanes  : 

TTCVaKTjSbv  (iTTOOnUV 

yrjyevel  (^vcTjiiavL. — Ranae,  v.  825. 


And  Virgil 


— imoque  trahens  a  pectore  vocem. — ^n.  1,  v.  375. 
L2 


250  AJAX.  [319—356 

he  all  along  was  wont  to  pronounce  were  suited  to  a  man  of 
cov/ardly  and  little-minded  sj^irit.  But  he,  noiseless  of  shrill 
outcries,  would  groan  inwardly,  moaning  as  a  bull.  And 
now  lying  in  such  miserable  plight,  the  man,  without  food  or 
drink,  has  fallen,  and  sits  quietly  amid  the  cattle,  victims  of 
his  steel ;  and  he  evidently  is  about  to  work  some  ill,  such  are, 
I  know  not  how,  his  words  and  lamentations.  But,  oh  my 
friends,  for  to  this  intent  was  I  sent,  come  ye  in  and  aid  him, 
if  at  all  ye  can.  For  such  as  he  are  vanquished  by  the  advice 
of  friends. 

Cii.  Tecmessa,  daughter  of  Teleutas,  dire  is  thy  tale  to  us, 
that  the  hero  has  by  his  woes  been  driven  to  utter  madness.^ 

Aj.  Ah  me,  me  ! 

Tec.  Soon,  it  seems,  will  he  be  more  so.  Hush !  heard  ye 
not,  Ajax,  what  a  cry  this  is  that  he  utters  aloud  1 

Aj.  Alas!  alas! 

Ch.  He  is,  it  seems,  either  still  distempered,  or  at  present 
pained  with  the  sickness  that  erst  possessed  him. 

Aj.  Oh  son  !  son  ! 

Tec.  Unhappy  me !  Eurysaces,^  for  thee  he  clamors. 
"What  can  he  be  thus  eager  for  ?  Where  art  thou  ?  Woe  is 
me ! 

A  J.  Teucer  I  call :  where's  Teucer  ?  will  he  everlastingly 
be  following  the  foray,^  while  I  am  perishing  ? 

Ch.  The  man,  it  seems,  is  sensible ;  but  open.  Haply  he 
may  feel  somewhat  of  respect  at  looking  even  on  me. 

Tec.  Behold,  I  open  ;^  and  thou  mayest  see  his  deeds,  and 
how  he  himself  is  conditioned. 

Aj.  O  mariners  beloved,  my  only  friends,  who  only  are 
abiding  in  upright  faith,  see  what  a  tide  from  a  bloody  and 
tempestuous  ocean,  just  now  careering  round,  encircles  me. 

Cii.  Alas!  how  you  seem  to  report  but  too  truly!  The 
deed  declares  how  insane  he  is. 

^  A  metaphor  from  the  inspiration  supposed  to  be  derived  from  the  sun. 

^  Eurysaces  was  son  of  Ajax  by  Tecmessa,  so  named  from  the  cele- 
brated shield  which  in  this  play  his  sire  bequeaths  him. 

^  This  confirms  the  remark  of  Thucydides  respecting  the  nature  of  the 
Greek  expedition  against  Trov,  and  the  cause  of  its  so  long  duration. — 
Thuc.  I. 

*  Here  takes  place  the  l:KKvKAr}fia,  as  it  was  called  in  the  Greek  thea- 
tres ;  the  centre  of  the  scene  opens,  and  discovers  Ajax  sitting  among 
the  slaughtered  cattle. 


S56— 391.]  AJAX.  251 

Aj.  O  race,  that  helped  me  in  the  seaman's  art,  thou  that 
didst  embark  to  ply  the  briny  oar — thee  only,  thee  I  say  of  all 
my  guardians,  have  I  seen  bent  to  relieve  me.  No  more  ;  but 
do  thou  slay  me. 

Cii.  Speak  v/ords  of  good  import :  do  not  by  ministering  to 
ills  a  remedy  as  ill,  augment  the  pain  of  thy  calamity. 

Aj.  Seest  thou  me,  the  bold,  the  stout-hearted,  the  fearless 
in  conflict  with  the  foe — now  terrible  of  misht  amid  harmless 
brutes  ?  AVoe  is  me  for  the  derision  with  which  I  have  been 
insulted ! 

Tec.  Do  not,  lord  Ajax,  I  implore  thee,  speak  thus. 

Aj.  Wilt  thou  not  away  ?  wilt  not  move  hence  thy  foot  in 
quick  retire  ?     Alas !  alas ! 

Cii.  Oh,  by  the  gods  I  pray  thee,  yield,  and  be  of  thy  right 
mind. 

Aj.  O  luckless  wretch,  I  that  let  slip  from  my  hands  the 
villains ;  and  falling  on  beeves  with  crankled  horns,  and  on 
bleating^  flocks,  shed  their  black  blood ! 

Cii.  Why,  in  sooth,  shouldst  thou  grieve  over  the  past  and 
done  ?  for  it  is  impossible  that  these  things  should  not  be  so. 

Aj.  O  thou  that  pryest  into  every  thing  ;2  continually  the 
tool  of  all  mischief — son  of  Laertes — thou  filthiest  vagabond 
of  our  host,  full  surely  thou  exultest  with  many  a  laugh  for 

joy- 

Cii.  By  God's  will  every  one  both  laughs  and  mourns. 

Aj.  Could  I  now  but  see  him,  though  afflicted  as  I  am! 
Alas!  alas! 

Cii.  Speak  nothing  haughty:  seest  thou  not  in  what  mis- 
ery thou  art? 

Aj.  O  Jove,  sire  of  my  forefathers,  how  might  I,  having  de- 
stroyed that  most  crafty  hated  outcast,  and  the  two  sovereign 
princes,  at  last  myself  too  fall. 

^  K?.vrdc  seems  applied  to  the  sheep  on  account  of  the  noise  of  their 
bleating,  6lu  rug  ev  avrolc  Tapax^£  nai  (jxjvug,  as  the  schoiiast  says.  See 
Liddell,  s.  v.  No.  2.— B. 

^  The  description  of  Ulysses  here  given  much  resembles  Thersites'  pic- 
ture of  himself  in  Troilus  and  Cressida  :  "  No,  no,  I  am  a  rascal,  a  scurvy 
railing  knave,  a  very  filthy  rogue."  And  the  mercy  which  he  thereupon 
obtains  from  Hector  may  v/elT  bear  Philoctetes  out  in  his  sentiments  on 
the  good  and  bad  among  mankind.  See  Phil.  44G.  Herman; i,  in  oppo- 
sition to  Musgrave,  considers  this  a  reproach  leveled  by  Ajax  at  the  dis- 
fruisc  assumed  by  Ulysses  to  penetrate  Troy  :   see  Od.  4,  244 


252  AJAX.  [392—425. 

Tec.  When  such  is  thy  prayer,  at  the  same  time  beg  death 
for  me  also ;  since  what  need  have  I  to  hve,  when  thou  art  no 
more  ? 

Aj.  O  darkness,  that  art  my  light,  O  Erebus,  to  me  most 
radiant,  take  me,  oh  take  me,  as  j^our  inmate,  take  me ;  for  no 
longer  am  I  worthy  to  look  on  the  race  of  gods  or  mortals  for 
any  j^roiit  to  mankind. ^  No,  the  Avarrior  goddess,  daughter  of 
Jove,  disgracefully  persecutes  me  to  destruction.  AV'hither, 
then,  can  one  fly  ?  "NVhither  shall  I  go,  and  there  abide  ?  since 
one  part  is  gone,^  my  friends,  e'en  with  the  work  before  you ; 
and  I  have  set  myself  upon  a  silly  chace  :  but  for  the  army — 
they  all  would  slay  me  with  hand  doubly  armed.^ 

Tec.  Ah  hapless  me!  that  a  man  of  worth  should  utter 
words  like  these,  which  he  ne'er  before  could  have  had  the 
heart  [to  speak] ! 

Aj.  O  !  paths  of  dashing  sea-surge,  and  caverns  that  skirt 
the  main — and  thou,  cliff-crowning  grove,  much,  much  and 
long  time  have  ye  detained  me  around  Troy ;  but  no  more,  no 
more  shall  ye  [keep]  me  drawing  the  breath  of  life ;  know 
this,  Vv'hoever  is  possessed  of  reason.  Oli  neighboring  streams 
of  Scamander,  kindly  of  spirit  to  the  Greeks,*  think  not  ye 
shall  any  longer  look  on  me,  a  man  (I  will  speak  out  the 
haughty  boast)  such  as  Troy  hath  not  seen  in  all  the  host 

-  There's  nothing  in  this  world  can  make  me  joy  : 

Life  is  as  tedious  as  a  twice-told  tale 
Vexing  the  dull  car  of  a  drowsy  man  ; 
And  bitter  shame  hath  spoil'd  the  world's  sweet  taste, 
That  it  yields  nought  but  shame  and  bitterness. 

King  John,  Act  3,  sc.  4. 
^  Perhaps  meaning  *'  my  hope  of  vengeance  is  lost  by  the  slaughter 
just  committed."     AV'under  gives  up  the  passage  as  hopeless. — B. 

^  ScTTa/^Toi;  here,  as  dopiTra/.To^  in  the  Agamemnon  of  ^Eschylus,  is 
used  transitively.  Eustathius  on  this  passage  says  the  Tra/iTov  was  a 
particular  weapon. — Tr.  Kather  render  "  the  well-armed  army  would 
slay  me." — B. 

^  Lobeck  understands  this  passage  as  a  mark  of  Ajax'  deep  resentment 
and  passion,  in  thinking  the  very  streams  of  Troy  had  conspired  against 
him  with  his  present  enemies,  the  Greeks.  There  does  not,  liowevcr, 
seem  any  reason  why  we  should  adopt  this  certainly  far-fetclied  idea,  un- 
less it  be  the  rise  of  the  Scamander  to  overwhelm  Achilles,  as  told  in  the 
Iliad.  Musgrave,  on  this  account,  proposes  to  read  Ji'cr^poi'ff .  Hermann 
removes  the  comma  after  'Apyeioi^,  and  renders  the  passage  "  never  again 
will  ye  in  your  favor  to  the  Argive  host  look  upon  this  man,"  vcstro  fa- 
vore  victorcm. 


42G— 456]  ^  AJAX.  253 

who  came  from  the  land  of  Greece.  And  now,  thus  dishon- 
ored, am  I  lying  prostrate. 

Cri.  Believe  me,  I  knov/  not  how  either  to  prevent  thee  or 
suffer  thee  to  speak,  ail  fallen  as  thou  art  into  miseries  such  as 
these. 

Aj.  Ah !  ah !  AVho  could  have  ever  thought  that  my 
name,^  thus  accordant,  would  harmonize  Avith  my  misfortunes ! 
For  nov/  twice,  nay,  thrice,  have  I  cause  to  utter  Ah !  in  such 
evils  am  I  involved ;  I,  whose  father  from  this  land  of  Ida, 
having  best  deserved  of  all  the  army  the  choicest  prize  of 
honor,  returned  home  possessed  of  all  renown ;  while  I,  his 
son,  having  come  to  this  very  realm  of  Troy,  with  not  inferior 
might,  nor  having  by  my  hand  helped  with  deeds  less  glo- 
rious, perish  thus  unhonored  by  the  Greeks.  And  yet  of 
thus  much  at  least  m.ethinks  I  am  assured,  that  were  Achilles 
yet  alive,  purposing  to  award  the  prize  of  excellence  to  some 
one  in  the  matter  of  his  own  arm,  none  else  but  I  had. 
grasped  them.  But  now,  on  the  contrary,  the  Atridfe  have 
worked  his  will  for  a  crafty  villain,  having  rejected  the  might 
of  Ajax.  And  had  not  this  mine  eye  and  distorted  mind 
■vvildly  strayed  from  my  purpose,  never  again  should  they  by 
vote  have  given  judgment  against  man.^  But  now  the  stern- 
eyed,  dauntless  goddess,  daughter  of  Jove,  baffled  me,  already 
putting  forth  my  hand  upon  them,  having  cast  on  me  a  dis- 
tempered phrensy,  that  I  stained  my  hands  with  blood  on  brutes 
like  these,  while  they  are  deriding  me,  having  escaped,  not 
by  my  will  indeed.  But  if  a  god  foil  him,  even  the  coward 
may  elude  the  braver  man.     And  now  what  can  I  do?     I 

^  The  ancients  attributed  much  importance  to  the  signification  of  names ; 
and  their  idea  was  probably  founded  on  tradition,  derived  from  the  patri- 
archal ages,  as  they  also  held  the  inspiration  of  a  death-bed,  taken  from 
the  same  source.  ''  God  shall  enlarge  Japhet,"  and  Japhet  signifies  en- 
largement. Abram  and  Sarai  changed  their  names  by  divine  command, 
for  such  as  better  suited  the  ancestors  of  nations  and  of  the  Prince  of  na- 
tions. The  Romans  carried  their  superstition  so  far  as  to  change  the 
name  of  Epidamnus  to  Dyrrachium.  In  fact,  of  such  serious  consequence 
were  names  considered  in  Greece,  that  Aristotle  in  his  Rhetoric  classes 
them  amonfj  his  heads  of  argument. — Tr.  "  Ai !  Ai !  who  would  have 
thought  my  name  of  Aias  would  suit  so  well,  as  namesake  to  my  woes'?" 
— Burges'  translation. — B. 

^  "  Eustathius  has  noted  the  anachronism  in  the  word  iip7](f>i.aav  in  this 
passage." — Herm. 


254  AJAX.  [157—485 

that  am  manifestly  abhorred  of  gods,  and  the  Greek  host 
detests  me ;  while  all  Troy,  and  these  here  plains,  are  my 
foes?  AVhether  shall  I,  having  abandoned  our  naval  station, 
and  the  sons  of  Atreus,  to  themselves,  cross  the  ^gean  sea 
for  home  ?  And  what  face  shall  I  show  my  father  Telamon, 
appearing  before  him  ?  How  will  he  ever  bear  to  look  on  me 
forlorn  before  him,  destitute  of  the  meed  of  valor, ^  whereof 
himself  acquired  the  illustrious  crown  of  glory  ?  The  deed  is 
not  to  be  borne ;  but  shall  I  then,  advancing  to  the  Trojan 
ramparts,  alone  with  them  alone  engaging,  and  achieving 
some  honorable  deed,  so  fall  at  last?  Nay,  thus  I  must  at 
all  events  pleasure  the  Atrid^e.^  This  may  not  be ;  some 
attempt  must  be  sought  of  such  a  nature,  as  that  by  it  I  may 
prove  to  my  aged  father,  that  being  his  son,  I  am  not  natural- 
ly at  least  a  spiritless  coward.  For  it  is  base  for  a  man 
who  meets  no  -change  in  evils,  to  wish  a  length  of  life.^ 
Since  Avhat  pleasure  hath  one  day  by  another,  adding  to, 
or  takino;  from  the  necessity  of  dvins?''  I  would  not 
buy,  at  any  price,  that  man  who  v/arms  himself  with 
empty  hopes.  No ;  or  nobly  to  live,  or  to  die  nobly, 
becomes  the  generous  man.^  Thou  hast  heard  all  I  have 
to  say. 

Ch.  None  will  ever  say,  Ajax,  that  thou  hast  spoken  senti- 
ments of  supposititious  growth,  but  of  thy  own  spirit.  Yet 
desist,  and  grant  thy  friends  to  prevail  o'er  thy  purpose,  dis- 
missing these  anxious  thoughts. 

Tec.  Ajar,  my  lord^  there  is  not  a  greater  evil  to  man- 

^  "  Ka?JAC>TeLa  proprie  est  prcEmhim  pitlchritudiuis,  lit  apud  Lucia- 
iium  in  Dcarum  judicio.  Hie  simpliciter  prctmium  valet,  quod  decent 
Lexica.  Ka7J.Lar£V£i,v  esse  foriissime  se  gerere,  ex  male  intellecto  Hcr- 
odoti  loco  7,  180,  natuni  est." — Musgrave. 

^  That  is,  by  his  noble  action  ;  since  on  death  he  was  at  all  events  re- 
solved. 

^  Such  is  the  wish  of  Parolles,  in  All's  V\'e\\  that  Ends  Well. 

*  If  Hermann's  reading  dvaOelca  be  adopted,  we  must  take  y/tttpa  Trap' 
rjfiap  by  itself  Hermann  gives  the  passage  thus  :  "  "SMiat  pleasure  can 
day  alternating  with  day  present,  when  it  docs  nothing  but  cither  add  or 
take  away  from  the  necessity  of  dying  !" — Tr.  I  have  adopted  this  view : 
see  Wunder,  who  quotes  Trach.  943,  sqq. — 13. 

'  GuAKi).   What  work  is  here!     Charmian,  is  this  well  done? 
Char.  It  is  well  done,  and  litting  for  a  princess, 
Descended  of  so  many  royal  kings. 

Ant.  and  Cleo.  Act  5,  sc.  1. 


433—518.]  AJAX.  255 

kind,  tlian  slavery's  forced  lot.^  Piut  I  ^vas  begotten  of  a 
free  father,  a  man  powerful  by  his  Avealth  among  Phrygians, 
if  any  were.  Yet  now  I  am  a  slave ;  for  so,  I  ween,  it  seemed 
fit  to  the  o-ods,  and  above  all  to  thv  liand.  Wherefore,  since 
that  I  have  shared  thy  bed,  I  am  a  vrell-wisher  to  thee  and 
thine,  and  conjure  thee  by  Jove  Guardian  of  tlie  Hearth,^  and 
thy  couch  whereby  thou  v/ert  united  to  me,  do  not  think  me 
deservino-  to  set  offensive  lansfuaire  from  thine  enemies,  leav- 
ing  me  a  spoil  for  the  hand  of  any.  Since,  shouldst  thou  die, 
and,  beino:  deceased,  abandon  me,  bethink  thee  that  on  that 
very  day  I  too,  violently  seized  on  by  the  Greeks,  shall  eat  the 
bread  of  slavery  with  thy  son.  And  some  one  among  my 
tyrants  shall  say  with  bitter  taunt,  harrowing  me  by  his 
words,  "  Behold  the  consort  of  Ajax,  who  w\as  of  might  pre- 
eminent amid  our  host — what  servitude,  in  exchange  for  how 
envied  a  lot,  does  she  support !"  Thus  some  one  \A\\  say. 
And  me  fortune  will  drive  to  this  ;  'tis  to  thee  and  thy  family 
words  like  these  are  a  disgrace.  But  respect  thy  father, 
wdiom  thou  abandonest  in  forlorn  old  age  :  respect  thy  mother, 
allotted  to  the  heritage  of  many  years,  who  often  implores  the 
gods  that  thou  mayest  return  home  alive.  And,  O  prince! 
compassionate  thy  son,  in  that,  bereft  of  childhood's  nurture, 
abandoned  by  thee,  he  will  be  thrust  about  by  no  friendly 
guardians  :  how  mucli  of  ill  this  is,  that  thou  at  thv  death 
v.'ilt  bequeath  to  him  and  me.^^  For  to  me  there  remains  no 
longer  any  one  to  whom  I  can  look,  save  thee,  for  thou  hast 
annihilated  my  country  with  thy  spear ;  and  my  mother  and 
my  father  another  fate  took  oif  to  be  in  their  deaths  inhabit- 
ants of  Hades.  ^     What  then  could  be  to  me  a  country  in  thy 

^  Lobeck  would  exclude  the  idea  of  slavery  from  the  Greek  expression 
here,  as  unsuitable  to  Tecmessa's  purpose. — Tr.  But  cf.  .Esch.  Choeph. 
75:  (IvdyKai^  ajLccpiTZToALv.  Soph.  El.  1193.  See  also  Eustath.  p.  10S9, 
38  :  Tzapu  'Lo(^ok7.£1  uvayKaia  rvxi  ^  6ov7.lkt;. — B. 

-  A  mosL  sclemn  adjuration,  and  used  by  Themistocles  to  Admetus,  in 
his  greatest  need. — Thuc.  I. 

^  These  sentiments  find  a  parallel  in  those  of  the  Sabine  women  in 
Livy  ;  and  the  lamentation  of  Andromache  throughout  is  very  similar  : 
An  only  child,  once  comfort  of  my  pains. 
Sad  product  now  of  hopeless  love,  remains  ! 
No  more  to  sm.ile  upon  his  sire,  no  friend 
To  helo  him  now,  no  father  to  defend  ! 

Pope's  II.  B.  XXII.  1.  G20. 
*  Hermann  remarks  on  the  gratuitous  barbarity  of  making  Ajax  kill 


25G  A  J  AX  ir>[9—rA2. 

stead'?  what  prosperity  could  I  have?  in  tli^c  is  centred  all 
my  hope  of  safety.  Nay,  preserve  tlie  remembraiice  of  me 
too.  Believe  me,  it  is  fitting  that  memory  should  abide  by  a 
man,  if  any  where  he  have  received  aught  pleasurable  ;^  for 
it  is  kindness  that  aye  engenders  kindness,  but  from  whom- 
soever the  recollection  of  a  benefit  received  melts  away,  that 
man  could  never  be  of  generous  birth.'- 

Cii.  Ajax,  I  could  wish  that  thou  didst  feel  pity  in  thy 
heart,  even  as  I  do,  for  then  wouldst  thou  assent  to  her 
words. 

A  J.  Nay,  largely  shall  she  meet  with  approbation  from  me 
at  least,  if  she  but  dare  aright  to  execute  the  task  enjoined. 

Tec.  Nay,  my  dear  Ajax,  for  my  part  I  will  obey  thee  in 
every  thing. 

Aj.  Go  fetch  me  now  my  son,  that  I  may  see  him. 

Tec.  Nay,  but  in  alarm  I  rescued  him  from  thee. 

Aj.  In  these  my  woes  ?  or  what  meanest  thou  ? 

Tec.  Lest  he,  ill  fated,  having  haply  fallen  in  thy  Avay, 
should  die. 

Aj.  This  were,  indeed,  well  suited  to  my  fate. 

Tec.  Nay,  therefore  I  guarded  him,  to  prevent  this. 

Aj.  I  approve  of  the  action  and  the  forethought  you  prac- 
ticed. 

Tec.  By  doing  what  then,  in  this  case,  can  I  profit  you  ? 

Aj.  Give  me  to  speak  to  him,  and  see  him  before  me. 

Tec.  "Well,  but  he  is  at  hand,  in  keeping  of  the  attendants. 

Aj.  Why  then  delays  he  to  vouchsafe  his  presence  ? 

Tec.  My  boy,  thy  father  calls  thee.  Bring  him  hither, 
whoever  of  the  servants  have  him  in  charge,  in  thy  hands. 

the  mother  of  Tecmessa,  and  adopts  Person's  reading,  supposing,  how. 
ever,  that  there  is  a  fine  omitted.     According  to  him,  the  fines  stand  thus; 

.  ov  yap  juoL  Trarpid'  ycruaag  dope, 
******** 

Kai  //T/Tt'p'  u/./Tj  /wlpa  Tuv  (jwaavTit  re 
KaOel/.Ev  "Al6ov  Oavaat/iovr  oluijTopa^. 
*  Si  bene  quid  de  nicrui,  fuit  aut  tibi  quicquam 

Dulcc  raeum,  miserere  domus  labantis,  et  istara, 
Oro,  si  quis  adhuc  precibus  locus,  cxue  mentem. 

.En.  IV.  V.  317. 
^  Brunck  has  paid  no  attention  to  Person's  remarks  on  the  metre  in 
this  passage  ;  but  Lobeck  has  adopted  the  professor's  emendation  of  Sui- 
(la.s.     For  just  reasons  against  the  other  readings  proposed  by  Porson, 
viJ.  Scale's  Metres,  p.  11. 


543—569.]  AJAX.  257 

A.T.  Dost  tiiou  speak  to  one  drawing  near,  or  one  who  lieeds 
not  thy  words '? 

Tec.  Even  now  this  attendant  is  conveying  him  from  no 
creat  distance. 

Aj.  Bring,  bring  him  hither,  for  he  will  not  shudder  at  be- 
holding this  fresh-slaughtered  butchery,  if  he  be  truly  in  his 
fathers  ways,  my  son.  Nay,  forthwith  it  is  needful  to  break 
him  in,  as  a  colt  to  the  stern  lore  of  his  sire,  and  that  he  be 
rendered  like  him  in  nature.  My  child,  be  thou  more  fortu- 
nate than  thy  father,  but  in  all  else  his  counterpart,  and  thou 
canst  not  be  a  coward.  Yet  even  now  thus  much  I  have  to 
en\-y  thee,  for  that  thou  art  sensible  of  none  of  these  present 
evils;  for  in  feehng  nought^  is  centred  the  sweetest  life,^ 
until  thou  learn  to  know  what  it  is  to  rejoice,  wdiat  to  feel 
pain.  But  when  thou  art  arrived  at  this,  it  is  thy  duty  to 
prove  on  thy  father's  foes,  thyself  how  gi-eat,  from  how  great 
a  father  thou  art  sprung.  Till  then  be  fostered  by  light  gales,, 
cherishing  thy  early  life,  the  joy  of  this  thy  mother.  There 
is  no  fear,  I  know,  that  any  of  the  Greeks  should  insult  thee 
wnth  hateful  contumely;  no,  though  thou  art  far  from  me, 
such  a  watchful  protector  in  Teucer  shall  I  leave  for  thee,  an 
unwearied  guardian  of  thy  nurture,^  although  at  present  he  is 
gone  far  out  of  sight,  busied  in  the  chase  of  foemen.  But, 
O  ye  shielded  warriors,  seafaring  people,  to  you  also  I  enjoin 
this  common  favor,  and  announce  ye  to  him  my  mandate, 
that  he  bring  this  my  son  to  my  home,  and  present  him  to 
Telamon  and  my  mother,  I  mean  Eriboea,^  that  he  may  ever 


Ah  I  how  regardless  of  their  doom 

I 


The  little  victims  play 
No  sense  have  they  of  ills  to  come, 
No  care  beyond  to-day. — Gray. 

^  Hermann  here  inserts  a  line  which  Brunck,  on  the  authority  of  Sto- 
bsBUS,  had  omitted  :  it  is  this  : 

TO  fiTi  (ppovelv  yup,  Kupr'  uv66vvgv  kukov. 

Ajax  admits  ignorance  to  be  an  evil,  but  still  asserts  that  *'  where  igno- 
rance is  bliss  'tis  folly  to  be  wise." 

^  Lobeck  praises,  in  his  note  on  this  passage,  Reiske's  emendation,  who 
reads  tfi-a,  keI  ravvv  ;  and  the  scholiast  on  v.  122  says  the  lonians  use 
ifj-TZTj^,  the  Attics  cfiTzag  and  tfiTza. 

*  Eriboea,  sometimes  called  Periboea,  was  daughter  of  Alcathous,  king 
of  Megara,  and  son  of  Pelops,  and  is  said  to  have  been  sold  by  her  father 
on  suspicion  of  an  intrigue  with  Telamon,  and  carried  to  Cyprus,  whither 
Telamon  f  jllowed  and  married  her. 


253  AJAX.  [570—504. 

be  the  support  of  their  old  age,  until  they  shall  reach  the 
dark  chambers  of  the  nether  god.  And  mine  arms  let  no 
masters  of  the  games,  nor  he  my  bane,  set  as  a  prize  to  the 
Greeks ;  but  do  thou,  my  son  Eurysaces,  take  and  keep  thy 
namesake,  my  shield  of  seven  bulls'  hides,  that  none  can  break  ; 
wielding  it  through  the  thickly-twisted  handle  r^  my  other 
arms  in  common  shall  anon  be  buried  with  me.^  But  take 
now  with  all  speed  this  my  son,  and  make  fast  the  house,  nor 
raise  lamentations  within  my  tent.  A  very  piteous  object, 
truly,  is  a  woman.  Close  the  door  speedily:  'tis  not  the  skill- 
ful leech's  part  to  liowl  an  incantation  over  a  sore  that  asks 
the  knife. 

Cii.  I  tremble  at  hearing  this  eagerness,  for  thy  sharpened 
tongue  likes  me  not. 

Tec.  Ajax,  my  lord,  what  canst  thou  purpose  in  thy  mind 
to  do? 

Aj.  Ask  not,  question  not ;  best  be  resigned. 

Tec.  Ah  me,  how  I  despair!  I  conjure  thee  by  thy  child, 
and  by  the  gods,  abandon  us  not. 

A  J.  Too  much  thou  vexcst  me  ;  knowest  thou  not  that  I  no 
longer  am  the  god's  debtor^  to  be  of  service  to  any? 

Tec.   Grood  words. 

Aj.  Speak  to  those  that  hear. 

Tec.  And  wilt  thou  not  be  persuaded  ? 

Aj.   Thou  pratest  overmuch  abeady. 

Tec.  Ay,  for  I  fear  me,  prince. 

Aj.  Will  ye  not  stay  her  quickly? 

Tec.  In  heaven's  name,  be  softened. 

'  For  a  description  of  such  a  shield,  sec  Wundcr's  extracts  from  Wcs- 
seliiiCT  and  Lobeck. — B. 

-  This  was  a  common  custom  in  ancient  times,  as  maybe  gathered  from 
Thucydides,  L.  I.  c.  viii. — Tr.  Such  was  also  the  custom  of  the  Danes. 
See  Olaus  Magnus,  quoted  by  Stevens  on  Hamlet,  Act  I.  :  "  That  tliou, 
dead  corse,  again  in  complete  steel."  Seward,  Earl  of  Northumberland, 
was,  by  his  own  desire,  buried  armed  cap  a  pic. — 13. 

^  A  similar  expression  is  found  in  A  irgil  : 

Nos  juvenem  exanimum  ct  nil  jam  coelcstibus  ullis 
Debentem  vano  mccsti  comitamur  honore. 

Yet  it  would  perhaps  be  going  too  far  to  say  that  Ajax  meant  not'hino- 
contemptuous  to  the  gods.  Since  writing  the  above  note,  Hermann's 
edition  has  appeared,  and  the  translation  is  altered  to  suit  that  edition  in 
this  passage. 


594— G32.]  AJAX.  259 

Aj.  Metliiuks  tlioa  liast  but  a  fool's  wisdom,  if  thou  pur- 
poscst  but  now  to  school  my  tem.pcr. 

Clio  Illustrious  Salamis,  thou  somcAvherc,  rocked  hj  occan,i 
r^rt  situate  in  happiness,"  ever  conspicuous  to  all ;  while  I,  un- 
happy from  time  of  old,  tarry  for  the  Idrean  meadowy  pastures 
as  a  rev/ard,  through  countless  months,^  continually  worn  away 
by  regular  and  unvaried  time ;  having  a  sorry  hope  that  still 
I  shall  one  day  reach  the  abhorred  destructive,-^  Pluto.  And 
now  the  cureless  Ajax  is  upon  m,c,  a  fresh  assailant,^  alas! 
alas !  co-mate  of  a  heaven-sent  phrensy  ;  whom  once,  in  for- 
mer time,  thou  sentest  forth  as  a  concpaeror  in  furious  war ; 
but  now,  on  the  contrary,  his  senses  all  astray, '^  he  has  proved 
a  deep  affliction  to  his  friends.  But  the  former  deeds,  of  his 
hands,  deeds  of  the  noblest  valor,  fell,  ay,  fell,  thankless  to  the 
thankless,  the  unwise  Atrido3.  Surely,  somewhere  a  mother,"^ 
nursed  in  the  lap  of  ancient  days  and  hoar  old  age,  when  she 
shall  have  heard  that  he  is  diseased  as  with  the  sickness  of 
the  soul,  hapless  shall  utter  not  ali !  Linus,  ah !  Linus,^  nor 
plaint  of  the  nightingrAe,  that  piteous  bird,  but  shrill-toned 
shrieks  will  she  wail  forth ;  while  blows,  struck  by  her  ov\'n 
hand,  shall  fall  on  her  breasts,  and  rcndings  of  her  hoary  hair. 

^  This  epithet,  though  perfo^tly  suitable  to  Delos,  appears  rather  mis- 
placed here  ;  and  Lobeck  sugtrnets,  that  as  /Eschylus  had  applied  the 
term  Oa/,acc6-/j]icroc  to  Salami.^.,  it  is  probable  that  Sophocles  v/rote  d?u- 
<^7.aKTog.     This  reading  is  adopted  by  Hermann. 

^  Cf.  Homer  II.  /3.  626,  vtjgcov,  ni  valovat  7:Epr,v  dXoq. — B. 

^  Hermann  proposes  to  read  Ih'?  passage  thus  :  'I6ala  [il[ivu  ?,eiu(l)vc' 
aTTocva,  fiTjvCjv  dvy^pidfioc,  Idcua  pratensia  frccmia  cxpccto,  mcnsium  innu- 
vicrabiHs.  These  prczmia  pratcnsia  arc  the  overthrow  and  sack  of  Troy. 
— Tu.  I  have  followed  Hermann,  wUh  Dindorf,  although  I  am  doubtful 
of  any  attempt  to  restore  this  difilcuit  passage  successfully. — 13. 

*  See  Buttra.  Lexil.  s.  v.  The  w^ord  may  he  also  taken  for  "  dark," 
"gloomy."— B. 

^  'EcljcSpog  is,  in  the  Frogs  cf  Aristophanes,  applied  to  Sophocles  him- 
self, and  the  Oxford  translator  has  this  pote  :  "The  tQeSpog  (tertianuc) 
was  a  combatant,  "who  waited  the  decision  of  some  trial  of  prowess  in 
the  games,  with  intent  to  offer  himself  as  opponent  to  the  conqueror," 
p.  16^0. 

•^  Liwcraily  "feeding  apart  from  his  senses." 

'  There  is  great  beauty  in  the  suppression  of  <^^he  name  throughout  this 
passage  ;  it  may  in  some  measure  be  thought  to  rrs'^mblc  the  y"A  cf 
Timanthes. 

8  Cf  .Esch.  Ag.  121,  139,  and  for  the  origin  of  the  ditty,  Pausan-  iz. 
29,  with  Kuhn's  note. — B. 


2G0  "  AJAX.  [083— GG9. 

For  better  "wcrc  lie  hiding  in  the  grave,  limn  liopclcsslj  dis- 
tempered ;  Avlio  coming  of  his  father's  race  the  bravest  of  the 
hard-toiling  Greeks,  is  no  longer  constant  to  his  natural  tem- 
per, but  is  wandering  Avithout  it.  Ah,  wretched  sire,  what  an 
insupportable  calamity  of  th j  child  aAvaits  thee  to  learn  !  such 
as  no  age  of  the  iEacidce  hath  ever  yet  fostered,  at  least  save 
this  man ! 

Aj.  Time,  the  lonir,  the  countless,  brinj^s  to  light  all  that 
is  unseen,  and  when  disclosed,  conceals,  nor  is  aught  liope- 
less ;  no,  both  the  terrible  oath  and  the  hardened  spirit  {ire 
his  prize.  For  I,  too,  that  lately  was  so  firm  in  my  dread 
purpose,  like  steel,  when  dipped,^  by  this  my  wife  here,  have 
been  womaned  in  my  speech  ;  and  I  feel  pity  at  leaving  her 
a  widow,  and  my  child  fatherless,  amid  foes.  Eut  I  will  go  to 
the  baths  and  meadows  alona;  the  shore,  that  havin";  cleansed 
off  my  pollutions  I  may  escape  the  weighty  anger  of  the 
goddess.  And  as  I  go,  wherever  I  shall  light  upon  an  un- 
trodden spot,  there  will  I  hide  this  my  sv.'ord,  of  weapons  the 
most  hateful,  burying  it  in  earth,  there  where  none  shall  ever 
see  it ;  but  O  may  night  and  Hades  guard  it  below.  For 
from  the  hour  wherein  I  took  to  my  hand  this,  a  present  from 
Plector  my  deadliest  foe,  never  to  this  day  have  I  got  auglit 
acceptable  from  the  Greeks.  No,  true  is  the  popular  adage,, 
"  The  gifts  of  enemies  are  no  gifts,^  nor  profitable."  Hence  . 
forth,  therefore,  will  we  know  how  to  submit  to  the  gods,  and 
learn  to  respect  the  sons  of  Atreus.  They  are  our  rulers, 
therefore  we  must  give  vray.  ^Vhy  not?  for  all  that  is  ter- 
rible and  all  that  is  mightiest  gives  way  to   ofiice.^     First 

'  fta^ll  oid7]pog  ug.  "  Tcnuiora  fcrramenta  oleo  restingui  nios  est,  nc 
aqua  in  fratrilitatem  durentur."  The  scholiast  has  a  note  to  the  same 
purpose.  A\  c  see  then  that  the  allusiou  "vviil  apply  to  what  follows  as 
well  as  to  what  precedes  it  in  the  text. 

-  "  By  what  argument  it  may  from  this  verse  be  gathered  that  the  Me- 
dea of  Kuripidcs  is  older  than  the  Ajax  of  Sophocles,  Elmslcy  has  stated 
at  the  six  hundred  and  fifili  line  of  the  former." — Hermann. 

^  There  is  a  passage  very  similar  to  this,  which  it  may  not  be  useless 
to  quote,  whether  as  an  argument  to  support  Shakespeare's  claim  to  tlic 
play  whence  it  comes,  by  the  evident  marks  of  his  style  which  it  l)ears, 
or  to  prove  an  old  assertion,  that  in  him  is  contained  the  fmcst  study  of 
the  English  language  : 

The  heavens  themselves,  the  planets,  and  this  centre* 
Observe  degree,  priority,  and  place, 


070— 70-i]  AJAX.  2G1 

snow-paced  Y»inters  give  place  to  fruitful  summer,  and  the 
orb  of  murky  iiieht  retires  for  the  day  vritii  his  white  steeds 
to  kindle  his  light, ^  and  the  blast  of  the  dreadful  v.'inds  hath 
lulled  the  roaring  main,  nay,  all-o'erpowering  sleep  looses 
vrlicre  he  hath  bound,  nor  always  holds  us  captive.  And  now 
shall  we  not  know  moderation  ?  Since,  for  my  part,  I  am 
even  now  aware  that  our  enemy  is  so  flir  to  be  hated  by  us, 
as  tiiougli  he  may  yet  again  be  our  friend ;  and  to  my  friend 
i  will  be  Avilling  thus  far  by  aiding  to  be  of  service,  as  if  he 
were  not  ahvavs  to  remain  so."^  For  to  the  many  amons: 
men  the  haven  of  fellowship  is  foithless ;  but  in  all  this  it 
will  be  well.  Do  th.ou,  woman,  having  retired  Avitliin,  pray 
to  the  gods  continually  to  accomplish  what  my  heart  desires ; 
and  do  ye,  my  clansmen,  do  me  this  honor  alike  with  her. 
And  signify  to  Teucer,  should  he  return,  to  look  well  to  me, 
and  at  the  same  time  be  a  friend  to  you.  For  I  go  thither, 
whither  go  I  must ;  but  do  ye  what  1  tell  you,  and  soon,  per- 
haps, you  may  learn  that  I,  though  now  unfortunate,  have 
found  deliverance. 

C'A.  Vv'ith  love  I  thrill,  and  overjoyed  I  soar  aloft.  O  Pan, 
O  Pan,  O  Pan,  Pan,  thou  ocean-wanderer,  shov/  thyself  from 
the  craggy  ridge  of  snow-beaten  Cyllene,^  thou  princely 
founder  of  heaven's  choir,  that  companying  with  me  thou 
might  essay  the  self-taught  Gnossian  and  Kysa?an  dances; 
tor  now  it  is  my  care  to  lead  the  chorus.  And  mayest  thou, 
Apollo,  Delian  king,  coming  over  the  Icarian  sea,-  accord  me 

Lisisture,  course,  proportion,  season,  form, 
Oliice,  and  custom,  in  all  line  of  order. 

Troilus  and  Cressida. 

^  See  Milton,  Book  VII.,  and  Thomson's  Ode  to  the  Seasons. 

'  This  is  the  sentiment  to  which  Cicero  alludes,  de  Amicitia,  c.  16  : 
"  Xegabat  ullam  vocem  inimiciorem  amicitiss  potuisse  reperiri,  quam  ejus, 
qui  dixisset,  ita  amare  oportere,  ut  si  aliquando  esset  osurus  :  nee  vero 
se  adduci  posse,  ut  hoc,  quemadmodum  putaretur,  a  Biante  esse  dictum 
erederet,  qiii  sapiens  habitus  esset  unus  e  septcm  ;  sed  impuri  cujusdam, 
aut  ambitiosi,  aut  omnia  ad  suam  potentiam  revocantis,  esse  sentcntiam." 

^  Cyllene  is  a  mountain  in  Arcadia,  the  birth-place  of  Mercury,  who 
shared  with  Pan  the  rin-ht  of  patronatre  there.  Gnossus  Vvas  a  town  cf 
Crete,  celebrated  for  its  beinir  the  birth-place  of  Ariadne.  There  were 
several  cities  of  the  name  of  Ny.sa.  of  which  the  most  renowned  was  in 
India,  caid  to  be  the  place  where  Bacchus  was  educated,  and  whence  ha 
derived  his  name  Diony.sius. 

*  The  name  "  Icarian''  was  given  to  that  part  of  the  A^ge^n  Sea  which 
encircle-s  Myconc  and  Gyaros,  the  supposed  scene  of  Icarus's  fail. 


2G2  ''  AJAX.  [705-743. 

thj  distinguislietl  presence,  forever  kind.  For  IMars  hath  dis- 
pelled the  heavy  affliction  from  his  eyes.  lo  !  lo  !  novv-,  now 
again,  O  Jove,  is  the  white  propitious  light  of  day  with  us, 
that  we  may  approach  the  swift  vessels  that  speed  on  the 
brine ;  since  Ajax  is  again  forgetful  of  his  troubles,  and  has 
again  performed  the  most  sacred  ordinances  of  the  gods,  with 
strictest  observance  worshiping.  Time,  the  mighty,  withers 
ail  away.  Nor  would  I  pronounce  aught  impossible,  at  least 
when  unexpectedly  Ajax  has  repented'of  hisNvrath  and  dire 
feuds  with  the  Atridte. 

Messenger.  My  friends,  I  would  first  tell  you  ;i  Teucer  is 
just  arri%'ed  from  the  Mysian  rocks  ;2  but  as  he  advances  into 
the  middle  of  the  camp,  he  is  reviled  by  all  the  Greeks  at 
once;  for,  having  discovered  him  coming  slowly  from  a  dis- 
tance, they  encircled  him  all  round ;  and  then  began  to  assail 
him  with  reproaches  from  this  side  and  that;  and  there  v\'a3 
not  one  who  did  not,  calling  him  the  brother  of  the  madman 
and  traitor  to  the  army;  that  he  should  not  save  himself  from 
death  by  being  thoroughly  m.anglcd  with  stones.  So  that 
i\\^j  came  to  such  a  pitch,  that  their  sv/ords,  seized  by  their 
hands,  were  dra^m  from  out  the  scabbards.  But  their  strife, 
having  run  to  its  greatest  length,  ceases  by  words  of  recon- 
cilement from  the  elders.  But  where's  Ajax,  that  I  may  tell 
him  all  this?  for  to  our  lords  it  is  our  duty  to  disclose  all  our 
tale. 

Cii.  He   is  not   within,  but   has  just  disappeared,  having 
coupled  new  plans  with  new  deportment. 

Mes.  Woe !  woe !  woe  !  Then  he  who  sent  me  on  this  er- 
rand, sent  me  too  tardily,  or  I  was  slo\v  in  coming. 

Cn.  But  what  is  there  too  tardily  managed  in  this  matter? 

Mess.  Teucer  forbade  to  let  the  man  go  forth  from  within 
his  abode,  before  he  himself  should  be  present. 

Cii.  Nay,  but  look  you,  he  is  gone,  having  betaken  himself 
to  the  best  of  purposes,  that  he  may  by  reconcilement  with  the 
gods  be  freed  from  their  wrath. 

^  Musgravc  conjectures,  that  in  allusion  to  the  well-known  custom  of 
heralds  among  the  ancients,  we  should  read  (^D.ov  rh  Trpu-ov:  Lobcck 
removes  the  period  at  the  end  of  the  line,  and  joins  the  two  last  of  the 
above  three  words,  retaining  (pi?.oi.     Hermann  foilov^-s  iMusgravc. 

^  For  mention  of  Mysia,  see  Herodotus,  L.  I.  Of  this  country,  v.hich 
was  in  alliance  Vvith  Troy,  Tclcphus  v.'as  monarch  at  the  time  cf'^tho  T.'o- 
jan  w^r. 


744—774.]  AJAX.  263 

Mess.  These  thy  words  are  fraught  with  abundant  follj,  if 
indeed  Calchas  prophesy  aught  Avith  right  judgment.^ 

Ch.  AVliat  is  its  nature"?  and  what  knoAving  of  this  matter 
[pro[)hesies  he"?] 

Mess.  Thus  much  I  know,  and  chanced  to  be  present.  For 
from  the  council  and  tlie  kingly  circle  Calchas  having  retired 
by  himself,  apart  from  the  Atridas,  and  placed  his  right  hand 
in  Teucer's  in  friendly  guise,  bade  and  enjoined  him  by  all 
manner  of  means  to  confine  Ajax  throughout  the  day  now 
shining,  to-day,  this  very  day,  Vvithin  his  tent ;  nor  let  him 
go  and  suffer  him  to  pass,  if  ever  he  Avould  see  him  again 
alive ;  for  on  this  day  only  the  Avratli  of  celestial  Minerva 
persecutes  him  :  so  spake  he  and  said.  For  the  seer  declared 
that  overgroAvn  and  unv.'ieldy^  bodies  are  wont  to  fall  under 
severe  misfortunes  by  divine  agency,  v/hen  one  that  springs 
from  a  mortal  stock  is  not  of  consequence  minded  as  a  mortal 
should.  But  he,  at  the  very  moment  that  he  saUied  forth 
from  home,  was  found  of  his  father,  advising  him  well,  too 
inconsiderate  ;^  for  he  strictly  charges  him,  "  Son,  be  thy  wish 
to  conquer  with  the  spear,  but  be  it  ever  to  conquer  throurh 
the  gods."  But  he,  with  haught  and  senseless  vaunt  replied, 
"  Father,  in  concert  with  the  gods  even  one  that  was  nothing 
might  obtain  the  victory  ;  but  I,  even  without  them,  am 
assured  I  shall  snatch  to  me  this  glory."  So  proud  a  boast 
did  he  utter.  Then,  a  second  time,  to  immortal  Pallas,  when 
urging  liim  she  bade  him  turn  his  gory  hand  against  the  foe : 
then  answered  he  a  speech  dire  and  unutterable,  "  Queen,  be 
thou  at  the  side  of  the  other  Greeks ;  where  I  am,  the  battle 


^  This  distinguished  seer  possessed  his  inspiration  by  birthright,  being 
the  grandson  ol'  Idmon,  the  soothsayer  that  attended  the  Argonautic  ex- 
pedition. 

2  I  prefer  reading  Kuvonra  with  "Wunder,  and  rendering  "  vain  and  im- 
pious."    See  his  note. — B. 

^  The  reason  which  is  here  given  for  the  misfortune  of  Ajax  is  pre- 
cisely that  of  which  Aristotle  approves,  who,  after  having  rejected  the 
two  extremes  of  virtue  and  vice,  proceeds  to  state  his  idea  of  a  character 
adapted  to  tragedy  :  "  And  such  a  man  is  he,  who  neither  in  virtue  and 
uprightness  is  transcendent,  nor  yet  changes  his  lot  to  misfortune  through 
vice°and  depravity,  but  one  that  does  it  through  some  error,  and  that  a 
man  of  high  renown  and  prosperity,  such  as  were  CEdipus  and  Thyestes." 
^-Poetics,  sect.  25. 


264  AJAX.  [773—709. 


never  shall  break  Ihroiigli."^  By  words  such  as  these  he 
earned  tlie  ruthless  anger  of  the  goddess,  being  of  a  spirit  un- 
suitable to  man.  But  if  indeed  he  live  to-day,  we  haply  may 
be,  with  Heaven's  aid,  his  preservers.  Thus  much  the  prophet 
said,  but  Teucer  instantly  sends  me  from  the  conclave,  bear- 
ing these  his  mandates  to  thee  to  observe ;  but  if  v*'e  are 
foiled  of  our  purpose,  then  is  the  hero  no  more,  if  Calchas  be 
wise. 

Cii.  O  wretched  Tecmessa,  of  hapless  race,  come  forth  and 
look  on  this  man,  what  manner  of  words  he  utters.  For  this 
cuts  to  the  quick,  that  none  may  joy  therein. 

Tec.  Why  rouse  ye  me,  miserable  that  I  am,  from  my  scat, 
when  but  now  respited  from  exhaustless  ills  ? 

Cii.  Listen  to  this  man,  since  he  comes  bringing  us  matter 
concerning  Ajax,  whereat  I  grieve. 

Tec.  Ah  me !  what  sayest  thou,  man  ?  Are  we  then  un- 
done ? 

Mess.  I  knov>^  not  thy  circumstances,  but  I  have  no  hopes 
of  Ajax,  if  he  be  from  home. 

Tec.  Weil  then,  he  is  from  home,  and  therefore  I  am  in 
agonies  at  what  thou  hast  to  say.^ 

Mess.  Teucer  sends  charge  to  confine  him  under  close  cov- 
er of  his  tent,  nor  let  him  go  out  alone. 

Tec.  But  where  is  Teucer,  and  wherefore  says  he  this? 

Mess.  Pie  is  just  arrived  ;  and  apprehends^  that  this  depart- 
ure of  Ajax,  that  he  tells,  is  fatal. 

^  fTo.Tier  represents  Ajax  of  a  temper  in  some  degree  resembling  this, 
though  not  so  haughty,  in  a  prayer  which  Longinus  has  quoted  and  com- 
mended : 

Zei)  TTurep,  u7>.?.u  av  pvaac  v~'  7/epog  vlcg  'Axdiuv, 
TLoiTjaov  6'  aWrjv  dug  (5'  G(pdu?i/j.oiciv  IdecOai, 
'FaV  6h  (pdec  Kal  bXeaaov. 

^  TiObeck  places  a  note  of  interrogation  after  (IxVtveiv. 

^  "  Bothc  has  ingeniously  conjectured  t/iTrl^eu-  (^fpei.  But  no  correction 
is  needed,  if  the  passage  be  but  rightly  taken,  and  one  report  not  to  such 
silliness  (inepta)  as  to  make  t'kixiL.etv  mean  even  metucrc ;  for  not  in  all 
cases,  bat  where  it  suits  the  sense,  is  this  verb  iiitroducod  in  sucli  a  maimer 
as  to  be  seemingly  used  to  denote  fear,  though  in  reality  it  i.s  to  bo  taken 
as  expressing  hope.  In  the  present  instance,  v.  hen  the  messenger  says, 
Sperat  Teucer  se  hunc  Ajacis  czituni  funcediim  mu^ciaturum  esse,  lie 
means  that  Teucer  has  a  hope  that,  hv  r(^;iorting  the  fatal  issue  about  to 
f:>llow  Ajax  on  going  abroad,  he  shall  clic'ct  hi.-j  detention  ut  home  for  that 


800— 822.  j  AJAX.  2Go 

Tec.  Unhappy  me !  liaving  learned  it  from  what  possible 
person  I 

Mess.  From  Thcstor's  prophet-son,  on  this  present  day,  that 
it  Ijrinas  him  life  or  death. 

Tec.  All  me !  friends,  assist  mc  airainst  this  emerecncv  of 
fortune,^  and  hasten — some  that  Teucer  may  come  quickly,  and 
some  to  the  west<?rn  bends  of  the  mountains,  some  to  the  east- 
ern go  and  search  out  the  hero's  ill-omened  sally.  For  I  know 
that  I  was  deceived  by  the  man,  and  made  outcast  from  my 
former  favor  with  him.  Ah  me!  my  child,  what  shall  I  do? 
not  sit  here — no  ;  I  will  be  gone  thither  whithersoever  I  shall 
have  strength  to.  Let  us  away,  let  us  hasten  hence ;  'tis  not 
the  moment  for  sitting  still,  for  those  at  least  who  wish  to  save 
a  man  that  hurries  to  death. 

Cii.  I  am  ready  to  be  gone,  nor  will  I  show  it  merely  in 
words,  for  speed  of  action  and  of  feet  at  once  shall  follow 
them." 

Aj.  The  slayer  is  set  upright,  where  it  best  may  pierce  (if 
one  have  leisure  even  for  consideration),  the  gift  of  Plector,  a 
man  of  foreigners  most  detested  by  me,  and  most  hateful  to 
behold.  But  it  has  fixed  itself  in  the  hostile  soil  of  Troy, 
fresh  sharpened  on  the  steel-consuming  wdietstone.  And  I 
myself,  having  well  prepared,  have  fixed  it,  the  kindest  friend 
to  Ajax  in  furtherance  of  his  speedy  death.     Thus  well  am  I 

day.''  Does  the  learned  professor  (Hermann)  mean  that  lAnt^eiv  can  not 
be  applied  to  our  expectation  of  an  evil  ?  To  say  nothing  of  Polybius, 
who  so  uses  it,  B.  9,  c.  G,  ses.  9,  sec  Thucydidcs,  1.  i.  and  7,  Gl — 
k'kiilg  Tov  (p6j3ov.  See  also  Arist.  Aves,  v.  958,  ed.  Brunck.  Hermann's 
own  interpretation  is  surely  far-fetched. — Tn.  But  the  construction  is 
hardly  satisfactory.  I  should  prefer  following  Bothc,  as  Wunder  has 
done. — B. 

^  This  passage  supports  an  opinion  of  Lobeck  alread^f  stated,  since  here 
we  find  no  allusion  to  slavery,  although  the  same  expression  is  used  at 
V.  485.     Sec  the  note  on  that  line. 

'  The  departure  of  the  Chorus  here  in  order  to  give  room  for  the  exhi- 
bition of  Ajax'  death  is  censured  by  Brunck,  but  defended  by  Lobeck  on 
the  example  of  ..Eschylus  in  the  Eumenidcs,  and  Euripides  in  Helen  and 
Alcestis.  And  he  also  remarks,  that  the  difiiculty  which  induced  ^Eschy- 
lus  to  relate  the  death  of  Ajax,  namely,  the  open  nature  of  the  stage, 
was  evaded  by  Sophocles,  who  carries  his  hero  as  far  as  possible  back 
from  the  eyes  of  the  spectators  to  the  inner  scene.  As  Potter  justly  ob- 
serves, this  single  speech  of  Ajax  is  worth  ail  the  unities,  an  attempt  to 
maintain  which  has  been  so  lately  made,  and  ably  refuted. 

M 


26G  AJAX.  [S23— 3.50. 

furnished.  But  after  all  tlii?,  do  thou  nrst,  O  Jupiter,  assist 
me,  for  it  is  but  reason.  Xor  will  I  ask  of  thee  to  obtain  an 
ample  boon.  Send  for  mc  some  messenger,  carrying  the  evil 
tidings  to  Teucer,  that  he  may  be  the  first  to  take  mc  up 
when  fallen  on  this  fresh-sprinkled  sword;  and  that  I  may 
not,  having  been  ere  that  discovered  by  any  of  my  foes,  be 
hurled  a  cast-away  to  dogs  and  birds  a  prey.  This  mucli  I 
beg  of  thee,  O  Jove ;  and  with  thee  I  call  on  the  nether  Mer- 
cury, conductor  of  ghosts,  to  lull  mc  softlj'-  to  repose,  when  I, 
have  burst  through  my  side  wdth  this  my  sword,  by  a  bound 
quick  and  without  a  struggle.  I  call  too,  the  ever-virgins  to 
my  aid ;  them,  ever  beholding  all  the  sufferings  of  mortality, 
the  awful  Furies,  with  gigantic  stride,  to  learn  of  me  how  I, 
unhappy,  perish  thoroughly  by  Atreus'  sons ;  and  may  they 
grasp  them  all  together,  villains  as  they  are,  by  a  death  most 
vile,  and  doomed  to  utter  destruction  ;  even  as  they  look  on 
me  falling  self-murdered,  so  self-murdered  may  they  perish  by 
their  dearest  ofispring.^  Go,  ye  swift  and  avenging  Furies, 
banquet  on  them,  spare  not  the  whole  armed  host.  And  thou, 
that  makest  the  high  heaven  thy  chariot  course,  O  sun  l-^  when 
thou  shalt  look  on  the  land  of  my  fathers,  checking  thy 
golden-backed  rein,  announce  my  woes  and  my  fate  to  my 
aged  sire,  and  the  w^retched  mother  that  nursed  me.  Full 
surely  she,  unhapp}',  when  she  shall  hear  this  report,  will  send 

'  !MusjTrave  considers  this  passage  to  refer  to  the  death  of  Ulysses  by 
his  sou  Telegonus.  Certainly  Agamemnon  did  not  fall  by  the  contrivanco 
of  any  of  his  children  ;  and  as  for  iMenelaus,  he,  if  Vv-e  may  credit  Homer, 
was  carried  to  the  islands  of  the  blessed  without  havino-  tasted  death  ;  how 
deservedly,  we  may  gather  from  Herodotus'  account  of  his  conduct  in 
Egypt.  The  curse  of  Ajax  is  remarkably  grand  and  awful,  but  will  hardly 
bear  comparison  v^'ith  the  celebrated  imprecation  in  Lord  Byron's  Giaour. 
— Tr.  Wunder  has  amused  himself  by  casting  cut  vss.  839—42  ! — B. 
^  This  most  sublime  idea  has  been  v/ell  imitated  by  Seneca : 

O  decus  mundi,  radiate  Titan, 

Die  sub  Aurora  positis  Sabfeis, 

Die  sub  Occasu  positis  Ibcris, 

Die  ad  seternos  properare  manes 

Herculem  et  regnum  canis  inquieti. 

Here.  .£t.  v.  151G.— Tr. 
Cf.  Eurip.  Phoen.  1,  u  t/}v  Iv  uarpoLg  ovpavov  refxvuv  ddoi>  kqi  xP^ 
G0KO?u?i.r/TotaLV  l/ii[3£j3C>g  dlchpoig,  "HAic,  Ooalg  tmroLGLv  elXiaauv  <p7ibya, 
Claudian.  de  Prob.  et  Olyb.  1.  "  Sol,  qui  flammigeiis  mundum  complcx- 
us  habenis,  volvis  inexhausto  rcdeuntia  saecula  motu.  Sparge  diem  meii- 
ore  coma,  crinemque  repexi  Blandius  clato  surgant  temone  jugales." — B. 


851— 8SS  3  AJAX.  2G7 

forth  a  dreadful  Avail  .nroiighout  the  Vvdiolc  city.  But  it  avails 
not  to  lament  thus  vainly :  no,  the  deed  must  be  done,  and 
v.ith  all  speed.  O  death,  death,  come  now  and  look  upon  me  ; 
although  thee,  indeed,  there  also  shall  I  meet  and  accost. 
But  theo^  O  present  brilliance  of  the  lustrous  day,  and  the  car- 
borne  sun,  I  salute  now  for  the  last  time,  and  never  again 
hereafter.  O  lisht !  O  sacred  soil  of  mine  own  countrv, 
Salamis !  O  floor  of  my  father's  hearth,  and  thou,  illustrious 
Athens !  and  race  that  shared  my  nurture !  and  ye  fountains, 
and  rivers  here,  and  the  Trojan  plains  I  address ;  farewell,  my 
fosterers :  this  his  last  v.'ord  does  Ajax  speak  to  you :  all  else 
will  I  tell  to  the  dead  in  Hades.' 

SE:>n-Cii.  Double  double  toil  and  trouble  !^  for  whither, 
whither,  ay,  v.'hither  v»'ent  I  not  ?  and  yet  no  place  knows  to 
learn  [of  thee].     Hist !   hist !   again  I  hear  some  noise. 

Semi-Cii.  'Tis  but  ours,  the  ship's  company,  partners  in 
your  voyage. 

SE:.n-Cii.  "NVeil,  and  what  then  ? 

Se3ii-Cii.  Ail  the  western  side  of  the  lleet  has  been  trav- 
ersed. 

SE3n-Cii.  And  hast  thou  then  G;ot — 

Se.mi-Cii.  Trouble  in  abundance,  and  nouo;ht  more  to  bo 
seen. 

SE?,n-Cii.  Xay,  nor  to  me  then,  on  the  measured  track  on 
the  east,  does  tlie  hero  any  where  present  himself  to  ^-iev^. 

Ch.  Who,  I  pray,  who  of  the  industrious  fishermen,  plying 
liis  sleepless  quest  for  prey,  or  who  of  the  Olympian  god- 
desses,-^ or  of  the  torrent  rivers  of  the  Bosphorus,  if  haply  any 
vrherc  he  descries  the  chief  of  savage  spirit  roaming,  Avill  tell 
me ;  for  grievous  it  is  that  I,  a  wanderer,  should  approach  r.o 

^  It  may  be  thought  that  the  play  should  have  ended  Vv'ith  a  speech  so 
sublime  as  the  preceding ;  but  Hermann  observes  that  the  spirit  of  the 
ancient  tragedy  v/ould  by  no  means  permit  the  omission  of  the  funeral 
Ij.mentations,  and  that  in  the  cruelty  of  the  Spartan  Menelaus  there  must 
have  been  something  very  acceptable  to  Athenian  ears. 

-  Literally,  "trouble  brings  trouble  to  trouble." 

^  The  feminine  adjective  is  used  with  deuv  here  by  a  similar  fonn  to 
Tl/J.ag  uvTJp,  and  others  of  the  same  sort,  o:i  which  see  Porson  on  Orest. 
2G4,  Phoeniss.  1033,  and  Lobeck  on  Aj.  323.— Herm.— Tn.  We  must 
observe  that  Idpig  has  been  cast  out  b}^  Erfurdt,  Dindorf,  and  Wunder,  and 
that  the  Orcades  and  Drj-adcs  of  Mount  Olympus  arc  meant. — B. 


208  AJAX.  [889—910. 

course  of  m j  lengtlicncd  toils  ;  nay,  nor  discover  wiicrc  an  en- 
feebled^ man  like  him  is. 

Tec.  Alas !  ah  me ! 

Cii.  AVhosc  cry  issued  from  the  neighboring  grove? 

Tec.  Alas,  unhapi)y  me ! 

Cii.  I  see  the  hapless  captive  bride  Tecmessa  overwhelmed 
amid  this  grief. 

Tec.  I  am  lost,  undone ;  1  am  utterly  ruined,  my  friends. 

Cii.  What  is  it  ? 

Tec.  Here  is  our  Ajax  lying  just  now  newly  slain,  folded 
over  his  hidden-  sword. 

Cii.  Alas,  and  woe  is  me !  for  my  return  !  Ah  me  !  prince, 
thou  hast  killed  th}'  fellow-seaman  here.  Lnhapj)y  me !  O 
lady,  sad  at  heart ! 

Tec.  'Tis  time  to  say,  Ai !  Ai !  since  such  is  his  fate. 

Cii.  By  whose  hand  then  could  he,  ill-fated,  have  ever  ef- 
fected this? 

Tec.  Himself,  Ly  his  own  hand  ;  'tis  plain,  for  this  his 
sword  stuck  in  the  ground,  whereon  he  fell,  convicts  him. 

Cii.  Ah  me !  for  this  my  misery !  'twas  then  alone,  by 
friends  unfcnced,  thou  didst  shed  thy  blood ;  v\'hile  I,  the  all- 
senseless,  the  all-ignorant,  neglected  thee.  Y>'here,  where  lies 
the  intractable  Ajax^  of  ill-omened  name  ? 

Tec.  Mark  me,  he  is  not  to  be  gazed  on.  No,  I  Avill  shroud 
him  entirely  in  this  enfolding  robe,  since  none  that  Avas  his 
friend  could  bear  to  look  on  him  exhaling  upward  at  the 
nostrils,"^  and  out  of  the  red  gash,  the  gore  now  blackened  from 

^  So  Hermann,  observing  "  tanto  magis  indignari  Chorum,  quod  Aja- 
cem  vix  morbo  liberatum  ipse  valens  assequi  non  potuerit." — B. 

^  For  Kpvpalcj  Musgrave  proposes  here  to  read  KaOat/io),  and  adds,  "  dc- 
sidcratur  certc  cpithetum,  quod  prajscntem  cnsis  conditioncm  dcclarct."' 
— Tr.  But  see  Wunder  on  v.  809.  Ajax  had  buried  his  sword  deep  in 
the  ground,  lest  the  weight  of  his  body,  when  falling,  might  turn  the 
blade  aside. — B. 

^  These  allusions  would  be  better  coiivcj-ed  by  using  "  Aias"  through- 
out the  play,  as  Mr.  Burges  has  done.  "  Vv'hcre,  where  lies  Aias  the 
stubborn  and  lucklessly  named  T' — B. 

^  Wakefield  (Sylv.  Crit.  p.  104)  proposes  to  read  Trpb^  pivoc,  and  quotes 
Statius ; 

Corruit,  cxtremisque  animsD  singultibus  errans 
Alterutris,  nunc  ore  venit,  nunc  vulncrc  sanguis. 

Theb.  in.  90. 


CJ 


919—955.]  AJAX.  260 

his  self-inflicted  deatll-^YOuncl.  Ah  mc,  Avliat  shall  I  do? 
AVhat  friend  will  bear  thee  off?  Where  is  Teucer?  I  trust 
that  he  may  come,  if  come  he  should,  in  time  to  help  lay  out 
for  burial  this  his  fallen  brother !  Ah  luckless  Ajax !  what 
thou  wert !  what  thou  art !  deserving  to  meet  with  mourning, 
ay,  even  from  thy  foes.^ 

Cii.  Wretched  man!  thou  wert  then  obstinately  bent,  at 
some  time,  to  accomplish  thine  evil  lot  of  endless  woes :  such 
words  wouidst  thou  sigh  out  all  night  and  day,  stern  heart,  of 
evil  sound  to  the  Atridoe,  with  deadly  passion.  Surely  that 
time  was  a  chief  source  of  troubles,^  when  the  contest  of  supe- 
rior valor  was  proposed  about  Achilles'  arms. 

Tec.  Ah  me,  mc  ! 

Cii.  The  i>ang  of  genuine  grief  pierces  to  thine  heart,  I 
know. 

Tec.  Ah  me,  me ! 

Cii.  I  doubt  not  thou  sighest  thus  doubly,  lady,  but  now  de- 
spoiled of  such  a  friend  as  this. 

Tec.  'Tis  thine  to  fancy  all  this,  but  mine  too  truly  to  feel. 

Ch.  I  confess  it. 

Tec.  Ah  me,  my  child,  to  what  a  yoke  of  slavery  pass  we ! 
w^hat  taskmasters  are  over  us ! 

Cn.  Alas !  in  this  thy  sorrow  thou  hast  made  mention  of 
the  unutterable^  deed  of  the  two  unfeeling  Atrid^e :  but  may 
heaven  avert  it. 

Tec.  Nay,  all  this  liad  never  stood  as  it  does,  but  with 
heaven's  will. 

Cii.  But  far  too  heavy  is  this  burden  they  have  brought 
upon  us. 

Tec.  And  yet  such  affliction  as  this  does  the  dread  goddess 
Pallas,  child  of  Jove,  gender,  to  gratify  Ulysses. 

Cii.  Ay,  verily,  the  chief  of  many  toils  in  his  darkling  soul 
mocks  us  with  scorn,  and  laughs  Avith  abundant  laughter  at  the 

'  And  if  thou  tell'st  the  heavy  story  right, 

Upon  my  soul,  the  hearers  will  shed  tears  ; 
Yea,  e'en  my  foes  will  shed  fast-falling  tears. 
And  say,  Alas  !  it  was  a  piteous  deed. 

3d  Part  of  Hen.  VI.  Act  1. 
'  "  Ille  dies  primus  leti,  primusque  malorum 

Causa  fuit."— .^n.  II.— B. 

^  Musgrave  proposes  dvaiScov,  rejecting  the  interpretation  of  uvai^dov 
by  infandum. 


270  ^  AJAX.  [9.0G— 982 

madman's  sorrows,  alas!  alas!  and  with  liim  Atreus'  two  royal 
cons  hearino;  them. 

Tec.  Then  let  them  laugh  and  joy  over  the  woes  of  Ajax. 
Perhaps,  marlv  me !  though  when  alive  they  desired  him  not, 
tliey  will  monrn  him  dead,  in  the  needful  time  of  battle;^  for 
the  weak-minded,  while  they  hold  in  their  hands  aught  good, 
knew  it  not,  ere  some  one  have  cast  it  from  him.  More  bitter 
has  his  death  been  to  me  than  sweet  to  them,^  but  delightful  to 
himself;  for  all  that  he  longed  to  possess  he  gained  for'himself, 
the  very  death  he  wished.  How  then  could  they  laugh  out 
against  him  '?  By  the  gods  he  died,  not  by  them^ — no.  ^  Then 
let  Ulysses  be  vainly  insolent :  for  they  have  Ajax  no  longer ; 
no,  but  having  bequeathed  to  me  sorrows  and  lamentations',  he 
is  departed. 

Teucer.  Ah  me !  me  I 

Cm.  Be  silent,  for  methinks  I  hear  the  voice  of  Teucer,  cry- 
ing out  in  a  tone  that  intently  dwells  on  this  calamity. 

Teu.  O  dearest  Ajax !  O  person  of  my  brother !  hast  thou 
then  dealt  with  thyself  even  as  report  prevails  ? 

Cii.   Teucer,  the  man  is  no  more !   of  this  be  assured. 

Teu.  Then  woe  is  me,  for  my  hea\y  affliction  I 

Cn.   Since  it  is  so — 

Teu.  Unhapi^y  me !  unhappy ! 

Cn.  'Tis  time  to  groan.  '  ^ 

Teu.  O  too  dire  calamity! 

^  See  Brunck's  note. 

-For  it  so  falls  out, 


That  what  we  have  we  prize  not  to  the  worth, 
■\Vhilcs  w^e  enjoy  it ;  but  being  lacked  and  loct, 
"Why  then  we  rack  the  value,  then  we  find 
The  virtue  that  possession  would  not  show  us 
"Whiles  it  was  ours. 

Much  Ado  about  Nothing,  Act  4,  sc.  1. 
-  Mu/Jmv  is  understood.     Thus  Homer  : 

BorZo//'  iycj  }muV  coov  Ifi/iEvai,  y  a.-o?.ecOac. 

B.  I.  v.  117. 
'  To  fall  by  the  hands  of  an  enemy  worthy  of  them,  was  often  a  con- 
Kolation  to  the  dying  heroes  of  antiquity,  and  is  so  used  by  Philoctctes 
to  Neoptolcmus,  on  his   hearing  of  Achilles'  death.     Thus  Turnus  in 
Virgil : 

— ; Non  mc  tua  fervida  terrent 

Dicta,  ferox  :  Di  me  terrent,  ct  Jupiter  hostis. 

iEn,  XII.  894. 


983—1014.]  AJAX.  271 

Cii.  Too  much  so,  Teucer. 

Teu.  Ah,  hapless !  But  what  of  his  child  ?  Where  in  this 
Trojan  hind  is  he  ? 

Cii.  Alone  at  the  tents. 

Teu.  Wilt  not  thou  with  ail  speed  bring  him  hither,  lest 
any  of  his  foes  lay  hold  of  him,  as  the  whelp  of  a  widowed  li- 
oness? Go,  bestir  thyself,  bear  aid.  All,  mark  me  !  are  wont 
to  deride  the  fallen  dead.^ 

Cii.  Nay,  moreover,  while  yet  alive,  O  Teucer,  the  hero 
left  a  charge  that  thou  shouldst  care  for  Eurysaces,  even  as 
now  thou  art  carinsr. 

Teu.  Oh  thou,  of  all  spectacles  to  me  the  most  painful  that 
I  have  ever  with  mine  eyes  beheld ;  thou  too,  a  journey  that 
of  all  journeys  has  surely  most  anguished  my  heart,  even  that 
which  I  have  now  come,  O  dearest  Ajax,  when  I  heard  thy 
fate,  following  up  and  tracing  it  step  by  step ;  for  the  report 
concerning  thee,  swift  as  if  of  some  god,  pervaded  all  the 
Greek  host,  how  that  thou  wert  dead  and  gone*  Which  I 
miserable  hearing,  while  I  was  absent  from  it,  was  inwardly 
groaning,  but  now  that  I  see  it,  am  utterly  undone.  Ah  me ! 
Come,  uncover,  that  I  may  see  the  whole  evil.  O  sight  dread- 
ful to  look  on,  and  of  bitter  daring,  of  how  many  pangs  having 
deeply  sown  the  seeds  for  me,  dost  thou  wither !  For  whith- 
er can  I  betake  myself,  to  what  manner  of  people,  I  that  no- 
v.'here  aided  thee  in  thy  troubles  ?  Doubtless  will  Telamon, 
thy  father  as  he  is  mine,  receive  me  with  kind  aspect,^  and, 
haply,  with  mild  air,  returning  without  thee.  For  how  should 
he  not,  whose  wont  it  is  not,  even  when  fortunate,  to  wear  a 
smile  of  more  than  common  pleasure  ?  What  will  he  suppress  ? 
What  reproach  will  lie  not  utter?  That  I,  the  spuriolis  off- 
rpring  of  his  captive  in  war  ;^  that  I  have  by  cowardice  and 

^  Of  this  savage  custom  among  the  ancients,  Homer  has  left  us  many 
examples,  and  none  more  strikmg  than  in  the  case  of  the  fallen  Hector, 
which  passage  Pope  has  in  his  translation  explained  away.     II.  B.  XXH. 

^  Ironically. 

^  Teucer,  as  he  himself  afterward  states,  was  the  son  of  Telamon  by 
Hesione,  daughter  of  Laomedon,  who  had  been  selected  by  Hercules  as  a 
reward  to  the  King  of  Salamis  for  his  services  in  that  hero's  expedition  to 
Troy.  The  event  justified  these  apprehensions  of  Teucer  ;  and  to  avoid 
his  father's  indignation,  he  fled  to  Cyprus,  where  he  founded  Salamis. — 
Tr.  66pv  TTo/.e/LiLov  signifies  a  captive  taken  in  war,  as  Tecmessa  in  v. 
?21  is  styled  /.exog  Sopul/.DTov. — 13. 


272  AJAX.  [1015—1046. 

unmaiilincss  betrayed  tliee,  dearest  Ajax,  or  in  treason,  that  I 
might  possess  thy  sc\creignty  and  patrimony  when  dead. 
Such  Avords  will  ne,  a  man  of  passionate  temper,  morose  with 
age,  who  is  angered  to  strife  by  a  mere  nothing,^  utter.  And 
in  the  end  shall  I,  repulsed,  be  cast  out  from  my  countiy,  by 
his  words  declared  a  slave,  and  no  freeman.  'Jiius  nmch  at 
home  ;  but  here,  at  Troy,  many  are  my  foes,  and  little  is  there 
to  profit  me.  And  all  this  have  I  incurred  by  thy  death.  Ah 
me !  what  shall  I  do  ?  how  shall  I  tear  thee  off  from  this  bit- 
ter shining-  sword,  the  destroyer  whereby  thou  didst  expire? 
Ivnewest  thou  how  in  time  Hector,  even  though  dead,  was 
doomed  to  be  thy  destruction?  Observe  ye,  by  the  gods  I 
ask,  the  fate  of  these  two  men.  Hector,  having  been  fast 
bound  with  the  very  girdle  wherewith  he  was  presented  from 
Ajax,3  by  the  steed-drawn  car  was  ever  racked  and  mangled 
until  he  breathed  out  his  life  ;  while  Ajax,  possessing  this,  the 
gift  of  Hector,  perished  by  its  means  through  a  fatal  fall. 
And  was  it  not  a  Furv  that  forcred  this  cimeter,  and  Hades 
the  other,  that  fierce  artificer?  I  then  vs'ould  say,  liiat  the 
gods  devised  both  this  and  every  thing  else  forever  to  mankind. 
But  to  Vv'homsoever  in  opinion  this  is  not  pleasiu£,  let  him 
fondly  cling  to  other,  and  me  to  this. 

Ch.  Extend  no  length  of  speech,  but  bethink  thee  how 
thou  wilt  commit  to  the  tomb  thy  brother,  and  what  thou 
presently  wilt  parley.  For  I  descry  a  foeman,  and  haply  he 
may,  as  would  a  villain,  come  forth  to  laugh  at  our  misfor- 
tunes. 

Teu.  But  what  man  of  the  army  is  it  that  thou  seest  ? 

Cii.  Menelaus,  for  v/liom,  in  fact,  we  undertook  this  voyage. 

Teu.  I  see  him,  for,  near  as  he  is,  he  is  not  hard  to  recog- 
nize.^ 

^  The  translators  failed  to  perceive  that  the  words  rrpbg  ovdhv  eic  tpiv 
Ovizoificvor  refer  to  the  general  character  of  Telamon,  and  not  to  the  pres- 
cr.t  instance  ;  for  surely  anfjor  for  the  death  of  Ajax  would  not  be  rrpbg 
ovdiV  !  Brunck  rightly  rendered  it  "  levissimani  quanique  ob  causam  ad 
jurgia  irritabilis." — B. 

^  alo/MC  probably  refers  to  the  flashing  streaks  of  light  and  shade  seen 
on  a  wcll-polishcd  blade.      See  Vv'under  on  v.  147. — B- 

^  This  is  not  found  in  Homer's  account. 

*  Probably  by  his  haughty  air  and  step. 

'Tis  he,  I  ken  the  manner  oi  his  gi.it, 


10-17—1075.]  AJAX.  273 

INIexelaus.  Ho  thou !  to  thee  I  speak.  See  tliou  aid  not 
in  burying  with  thine  hands  this  corpse,  but  leave  it  as  it  is. 

Teu.  For  what  purpose  hast  thou  spent  thus  much  in 
words  ? 

Mex.  As  my  pleasure,  and  his  who  sways  the  host. 

Teu.  Wilt  thou  not  then  say  Avhat  cause  alleging  '^ 

Men.  Because  that,^  having  hoped  we  should  bring  him 
from  home  both  friend  and  ally  to  Greeks,  we  have,  on  inquiiy, 
found  him  out  to  be  more  hostile  than  the  Phrygians ;  wdio, 
having  plotted  destruction  to  the  whole  army  at  once,  went 
forth  armed  by  night  against  it  to  subdue  it  with  his  spear. 
And  had  not  some  god  baffled  this  his  attempt,  we  had  lain 
victims  to  the  very  fate  himself  hath  obtained,  murdered  by  a 
death  most  ignominious,  while  he  w'ould  have  lived.  But  god 
now  hath  wrought  the  chano;e,  that  his  violence  should  fall  on 
the  slieep  and  Hocks.  Wherefore  there  lives  not  the  man  of 
so  much  power  as  to  entomb  his  body  in  the  grave ;  but  cast 
out  on  the  pale  sand,  he  shall  become  food  for  the  birds  that 
coast  along;  the  brine.  And  therefore  assume  thou  no  fierce 
indignation ;  for  although  we  could  not  master  him  alive,  at 
all  events  we  will  rule  him  dead,  although  thou  be  unwilling, 
perforce  chastening  him  with  our  hands.  For  there  is  no 
instance  in  Avhich,  while  he  lived,  he  was  ever  willing  to  attend 
to  my  words ;  and  yet  it  is  the  proof  of  a  bad  man,  that  he,  a 
private  citizen,  should  in  nothing  deign  to  listen  to  those  who 
are  set  over  him.  For  never,-  neither  in  a  state  could  laws 
be  rightly  carried  on,  where  fear  has  not  been  established,  nor 
surely  could  an  army  endure  a  commander  w^ith  submission 

He  rises  on  the  toe  ;   that  spirit  of  his 
In  aspiration  lifts  him  from  the  earth. 

Troilus  and  Cressida,  Act  4,  sc.  5. 

'  This  is  in  accordance  with  Aristotle's  rule,  who,  in  his  enumeration 
of  those  toward  whom  ano-er  is  felt,  mentions  friends  before  eneraios,  as 
the  injury,  being  unexpected,  is  the  greater. — Rhet.  B.  II.  c.  ii. 

^  In  Troilus  and  Cressida  the  speech  of  Ulysses  in  council  enlarges  this 
sentiment  beautifully  ;  the  whole  is  too  long  for  insertion,  but  parts  of  it 
seem  almost  paraphrased  : 

Take  but  degree  away,  untune  that  string, 
And,  hark,  what  discord  follows  !     *         * 

Force  should  be  right,  or,  rather,  right  and  wrong 
(Between  whose  endless  jar  justice  resides) 
Should  lose  their  names,  and  so  should  justice  too. 

M  2 


274  AJAX.  [1076—1108. 

any  longer,  having  no  barrier  of  respect  and  shame.  But  an 
individual,  though  he  be  larg6  of  person,  it  behooves  to  think 
that  he  may  hereafter  fall,  though  by  a  puny  ill.i  For  to 
whom  both  fear  and  the  sense  of  honor  attach,  that  man,  be 
sure,  carries  with  him  his  safety;  but  where  it  is  allowed  liim 
to  be  insolent  and  do  whatever  he  pleases,  think  that  at  some 
future  time  this  state,  though  it  sped  before  a  fiivoring  gale, 
will  sink  to  the  bottom.  But  let  me  ever  be  fixed  in  a  whole- 
some awe,2  and  let  me  not  think  that  after  doing  what  I  please, 
I  shall  not  pay  back  in  turn  Avhat  pains  me.  Alternately  this 
comes  upon  us.  Before  now,  this  man  was  a  fiery  insolent ; 
now  I  in  turn  am  high-minded,  and  command  thee  not  to 
bury  him,  lest  that  by  burying  him  thyself  sink  into  the 
tomb. 

Ch.  Menelaus,  do  not,  having  set  forth  vrise  sentiments,  be- 
come in  consequence  thyself  an  insulter  of  the  dead. 

Teu.  Never  again,  my  friends,  could  I  wonder  at  a  man, 
wdio,  being  nothing  by  birth,  consequently  errs,  when  they 
who  fancy  they  are  born  of  a  noble  family,  err  in  their  speech 
with  words  such  as  these.  Come,  teU  me  again  from  the 
beginning,  canst  thou  say  thou  didst  take  and  bring  this  man 
hither  as  an  ally  to  the  Greeks?  Did  not  he  himself  sail  out 
as  his  own  master?  AVherein  art  thou  his  commander?  and 
wherein  is  it  allowed  thee  to  sway  the  people  that  he  led  forth 
from  home.  Thou  earnest  as  prince  of  Sparta,  and  not  as 
commanding  us ;  nor  is  there  w^here  the  law  of  rule  was  laid 
dow^n  for  thee  to  order  him,  any  more  than  he  thee.  Thou 
camast  hither  under  the  command  of  others,  not  general 
of  the  whole  army,  that  thou  shouldst  ever  lord  it  over  Ajax. 
No,  rule  those  whom  thou  dost  rule,  and  in  haughty  terms 
chastise  them  ;  but  my  brother  here,  whether  thou  forbid,  or 

^  "Nihil  est  tam  firinum,  cui  v.on  pcriculum  sit  ctiam  ab  invalido." 
This  is  somewhat  provcrbiai.  Theocritus,  iv.  55,  ocGiXov  Icri  to  rvufxa 
nal  uAlkov  (Ivdpu  SajuuaSei. — U. 

^  "This  is  said  by  Menclaus  in  perfect  conformity  with  the  Spartan  in- 
stitutions ;  which  nation  built  a  small  temple  to  Fear  close  by  the  throne 
of  the  Ephori  " — Lobeck.  Yet  Pericles,  in  his  funeral  oration,  has 
claimed  it  pre-eminently  for  his  countrymen.  V.  Thuc.  11.  37. — Tn. 
Compare  Lucan's  character  of  Cscsar,  Phars.  III.  80.  "  Non  ilium  Icctis 
vadcntem  cactibus  urbes,  Sed  tacitse  videre  metu,  non  constitit  usquam 
Oovia  turba  duci :  gaudct  tamen  csso  timori  Tam  magno  populis,  ct  se 
non  mallet  amari." — B. 


1100— ll-:7.]  AJAX.  275 

the  other  chieftain,  Vvill  I  duly  commit  to  the  tomb,  fearless  of 
thy  mouthing.  Since  in  no  wise  for  thy  wife's  sake  did  he 
campaign,  like  adventurers  ever  busy,  but  for  his  oath's,^  where- 
by he  was  bound,  and  not  for  tlice,  since  he  valued  not  the 
worthlesfs.  Wherefore  come  and  bring  Avith  thee  hither  more 
heralds,  and  the  general :  but  for  thy  rant  I  would  not  turn 
me,  so  long  as  thou  shalt  be  such  as  thou  art. 

Cn.  Nay,  on  the  other  hand,  I  like  not  such  speeches  in  mis- 
fortune ;  for  harsh  reproofs,  mark  me,  though  they  be  but  too 
just,  arc  biting. 

Men.  Methinks  our  archer  thinks  not  little  of  himself.- 

Teu.  No,  for  'twas  no  sordid  art  I  acquired. 

]Mex.  Thou  wouldst  be  likely  to  boast  somewhat  largely 
couldst  thou  bear  a  shield. 

Teu.  Even  unarmed  I  were  a  match  for  thee  at  any  rate, 
though  mailed.-^ 

Mex.  How  bold  a  spirit  this  that  thy  tongue  nurtures ! 

Teu.  Yes,  in  a  just  cause  it  is  allowable  to  be  high-spir- 
ited. 

Men.  What,  is  it  just  that  he  should  prosper,  having  slain 
me? 

Teu.  Having  slain  thee !  Thou  hast  spoken  a  Avonder  in- 
deed, if  thou  thounh  dead  livest. 

'^  The  story  is  that  Tyndarus,  father  of  Helen,  bound  all  her  suitors  by 
strict  oaths  to  maintain  the  cause  of  him  whom  she  should  choose  as  her 
husband,  and  resist  or  revenge  any  attempt  to  carry  her  off.  Thucydi«. 
des,  however,  gives  a  different  opinion  in  his  first  book,  and  considers 
Agamemnon  to  have  exercised  a  feudal  authority  over  the  other  chiefs 
that  composed  the  Grecian  force. — Tr.  The  Schol.  interprets  ol  tt.  tt. 
7r2ccj,  ol  (pi?i.oKiv6vvoL,  OL  7z7.T]peig  ruv  lavSivuv  /.iycL  di:  rovg  fiLodo^o- 
povg. — B. 

^  The  archers  were  reckoned  among  the  ipi'koL  or  light-armed  troops  of 
the  Greeks,  and  accounted  inferior  to  the  Hoplites.  Homer  (II.  8)  men- 
tions the  manner  of  Teucer's  fighting,  and  his  retiring  behind  his  broth- 
er's shield  for  protection  afcer  the  discharge  of  his  arrows.  For  an  ex- 
ample of  the  contempt  in  which  bowmen  were  held,  Musgrave  refers  to  a 
dispute  of  Lycus  in  Euripides,  Here.  Fur.  158.  The  Lysistrata  and 
Acharnians  of  Ariptophanes  likewise  show  their  low  estimation  of  arch- 
ers and  archery  at  Athens. 

'  Thrice  is  te  a'^m'd  that  hath  his  quarrel  just ; 

And  he  but  naked,  though  lock'd  up  :n  steel, 
Whose  conscience  vrith  injustice  is  corrupted. 

Second  Pan  of  Hein->  VI.  Acx  3,  «c-  2. 


27G  AJAX.  [1123— 11 M. 

INIen.  I  do,  for  heaven  rescues  me,  but  as  far  as  lie  is  con- 
cerned I  am  no  more. 

Teu.  Having  by  the  gods  been  saved,  do  not  now  dishonor 
the  gods. 

Men.  What,  should  I  impugn  the  divine  laws  ? 

Teu.  Yes,  if  thou  art  here  to  forbid  the  burial  of  the 
dead. 

Men.  Mine  own  enemies  at  least  for  myself  I  do  ;  for  it  is 
not  fitting. 

Teu.  What,  did  Ajax  ever  confront  thee  as  a  foe  ? 

Men.  I  hated  him  who  hated  me ;  thou  knewest  this  thy- 
self. 

Teu.  Ay,  for  thou  wast  found  of  him  a  fraudulent  voter. 

Men.  That  slip  was  made  by  the  judges,  not  me. 

Teu.  Many  a  crime  mightest  thou  Avickedly  and  fraudfully 
commit  in  secret. 

Men.  These  words  are  coming  on  to  annoyance  for  some 
one. 

Teu.  No  more  so  methinks  than  Ave  shall  annoy. 

Men.  One  thing;  I  will  tell  thee.  This  felloAV  must  not  be 
entombed. 

Teu.  And  do  thou  in  return  hear  j^  this  man  shall  presently 
be  buried. 

Men.  Once  ere  now  saw  I  a  man  daring  in  tongue,  urging 
on  his  crew  to  sail  in  stormy  Aveather,  in  Avhom  thou  mightest 
not  have  found  the  poAver  of  speech  Avhen  by  the  peril  of  the 
storm  he  Avas  encompassed ;  no,  hidden  under  his  cloak  he  gaAe 
himself  up  for  any  one  of  the  seamen  that  Avould  to  trample 
on.  And  so  also  thee  and  thy  unbridled  tongue  a  mighty 
storm,  bursting  forth  from  a  little  cloud,  might  haply  put  down 
in  thy  tedious  clamor. 

Teu.  And  I  too  have  beheld  a  man  filled  Avith  folly,  Avho 
AA'^as  insulting  the  calamities  of  his  neighbors.  And  then  one 
like  to  me  in  person,  and  in  temper  similar,  having  looked 
upon  him,  spake  Avords  such  as  these :  "  Man,  treat  not  the 

^  Here  Brunck  defends  the  future  middle  as  used  in  an  active  sense  ; 
but  Lobeck  has  produced  instances  from  Sophocles  himself  (CEd.  Tyr. 
544),  and  other  approved  Attic  writers  (Xen.  Anab.  II.  5),  which  seems 
to  favor  the  substitution  of  av  uvtukovoov  tv  ro(5'. — Tr.  The  future  per- 
fect is  often  used  to  imply  great  determination  or  earnestness  on  the  part 
of  the  speaker. — B. 


1154—1190]  AJAX  277 

dead  with  injury,  for  if  thou  wilt  do  so,  know  thou  shalt  be 
punished."  Thus,  being  by,  did  he  admonish  that  luckless 
wight.  But  mark,  I  see  him  ;  and  he  can  be,  to  my  thinking, 
none  else  than  thou.     Have  I  spoken  riddles? 

Men.  I  will  be  gone.  For  base  were  it,  if  any  one  were 
to  hear  such  a  thing,  for  one  who  can  use  force  to  punish  by 
words. 

Teu.  Crawl  hence  now,  for  in  me  too  is  it  most  base  to 
listen  to  a  vain  fellow  prating  paltry  words. 

Cii.  The  conflict  of  a  mighty  quarrel  will  ensue.  But 
speeding,  Teucer,  as  best  thou  canst,  be  quick  to  look  out  a 
lioUow  grave  for  Ajax,^  where  he  shall  possess  his  mouldering 
sepulchre  by  mortals  ne'er  forgotten. 

Teu.  And  in  truth,  at  the  very  nick  of  time,  here  at  hand 
come  the  wife  and  child  of  this  my  brother,  to  deck  out  the 
tomb  of  the  unfortunate  dead.  Come  hither,  my  boy,  and 
standing  near,  as  a  suppliant,  touch  thy  father  that  begot 
thee.  And  sit  thou  his  petitioner,  holding  in  thy  hands  my 
hair,2  and  hers  here,  and  thine  own  the  third,  a  suppliant's 
store.  ]3ut  if  any  one  from  the  army  would  pluck  thee  forci- 
bly from  this  corpse,  be  the  villain,  as  a  villain  should,  an  un- 
buried  outcast  from  his  country,  mowed  down  root  and  branch 
with  all  his  race,  even  thus  as  I  cut  this  lock  of  hair.  Take 
it,  my  child,  and  keep  it,  and  see  that  none  move  thee,  but 
having  fallen  on  the  body,  cling  fast.  And  do  not  ye  stand 
close  by  him  as  women  instead  of  men,  but  protect  him  until 
I  come,  having  provided  for  the  burial  of  this  man  though 
none  permit. 

Cii.  What  number  of  much-wandering  years  being  the  last 
will  ever  cease,  [a  number]  ever  bringing  upon  me  a  ceaseless 
distress  of  spear-ravening  toils  through  wide^  Ti'oy,  the  dire 

^  Sophocles  has  .said  nothing  of  the  body  of  Aiax  being  burned,  that 
being  a  privilege  denied  to  him  on  the  authority  of  Calchas,  who  declared 
the  holy  element  of  fire  to  be  polluted  by  consuming  therein  the  remains 
of  suicides.     Philostratus  in  Heroicis. 

'  The  custom  of  consecrating  their  hair  was  very  common  among  the 
ancients  ;  and  in  Euripides,  we  find  Electra  condemning  Helen  for  spar- 
ing her  locks.  Orestes,  1.  128.  So  also  Achilles,  at  the  funeral  of  Pa- 
troclus,  cuts  off  the  hair  he  had  vowed  to  his  native  river  Spercheius  ;  and 
his  example  was  followed,  out  of  respect  to  the  dead,  by  the  other  Greeks. 
II.  XXIII.  135. 

^  There  is  some  doubt  about  evpudr/g      Some  take  it  as  equivalent  to 


278  AJAX.  [1191—1233. 

reproacli  of  Greeks?  Would  that  that  man  had  first  entered 
the  boundless  aether,  or  Hades,  the  dwelling  of  all,  who  show- 
ed the  Greeks  the  common  use  in  war  of  hateful  arms.  Ah, 
toils,  of  toils  the  parent !  For  he  was  man's  ruin.^  Pie  hath 
appointed  to  company  with  me  neither  the  joy  of  chaplets, 
nor  of  deep  goblets,  nor  the  dulcet  harm.ony  of  flutes,  the 
wretch,  nor  to  linger  o'er  nightly  delights  ;  no,  from  love,  from 
love,  alas !  he  has  debarred  me.  And  thus  uncared-for  I  am 
lying,  my  hair  continually  drenched  with  fast-falling  dews," 
memorials  of  doleful  Troy.  And  truly  up  to  this  time  the 
valiant  Ajax  was  my  buhvark  from  nightly  terror,  and  from 
the  arrow ;  but  now  he  is  undone  by  a  hateful  doom ;  what 
delight,  then,  what  pleasure  will  ever  again  attend  me?  O 
could  I  be  where  the  woody  foreland,  washed  by  the  wave, 
beetles  o'er  the  main,  'neath  Sunium's  lofty  plain,  that  I  might 
accost  the  sacred  Athens.^ 

Teu.  Truly  I  hurried  back,  having  seen  the  commander 
Agamemnon  hastening  hither  to  us ;  and  he  evidently  is  about 
to  let  loose  his  evil  tongue  on  me. 

Agamemnon.  They  tell  me  thou  darest  vaunt  against  us 
thy  fierce  invectives  thus  with  impunity ;  thee,  to  thee,  son  of 
the  captured  slave,  I  speak.  Truly  hadst  thou  been  born  of 
a  noble  m.other,  thou  wouldst  have  boasted  loftily,  and  walked 
on  tiptoe,  Avhen,  thyself  a  nothing,^  for  one  that  is  nothing 
thou  hast  stood  up  against  us.     On  oath  too  hast  thou  affirmed 

evp6eir,  "dank"  (cf.  Horn.  Od.  X.,  512  ;  Hesiod.  Theog.  731),  but  oth- 
ers like  ei'pvc,  as  Homer's  Tpoirjv  evpelav  or  evpvdjvLap.  As  I  can  not 
see  how  the  former  sense  could  well  be  applied  to  Troy,  I  have  adopted 
the  otlier. — B. 

^  Still  finer  are  the  reflections  of  Henry  the  Sixth  upon  the  evils  of 
war,  as  the  causes  which  produce  them  are  more  dreadful,  and  truly  war- 
rant his  exclaiming,  "Woe  upon  v/oe,  grief  more  than  common  grief!" 

-  Similar  to  this  is  the  complaint  of  the  herald  in  the  Agamemnoo  of 
-^schylus. 

^  It  was  probably  from  these  lines  that  Lord  Byron  took  the  hint  for 
the  last  stanza  of  his  ode  to  the  Greek  isles  : 

Place  me  on  Sunium's  marbled  steep, 
"Where  nothing,  save  the  waves  and  I, 

May  hear  our  mutual  murmurs  weep — 
There,  swan-like,  let  me  sing  and  die. 

*  Shamest  thou  not,  knowing  whence  thou  art  extraught, 

To  let  thy  tongue  detect  tliy  base-born  heart  ? 

Third  Part  of  llcury  VI.  Act  2,  so.  2. 


1233— 12G3.J  AJAX.  270 

that  we  have  come  neither  jrenerals  nor  admirals  of  the  Greeks 
or  of  thee  ;  no,  as  thou  sayest,  Ajax  eailed  his  own  com- 
mander. Are  not  these  iireat  insuhs  to  hear  from  shaves? 
In  behalf  of  what  manner  of  man  liast  thou  clamored  thus 
hau^htilv !  whither  havinrr  marched,  where  made  his  stand, 
where  I  did  not  ?  Have  then  the  Greeks  no  men  save  him  ? 
Of  bitter  consequence  methinks  was  the  contest  we  proclaimed 
of  late  to  the  Greeks  for  Achilles'  arms,  if  every  where  we  arc 
to  be  declared  villains  by  Teucer ;  and  if  it  will  never  content 
you,  not  even  when  worsted,  to  acquiesce  in  what  seemed  fit 
to  the  majority  of  your  judges,  but  ye  will  constantly  either 
assail  us  somehow  with  reproaches,  or  harass  us  with  covert 
treason,  you  the  vanquished  party.  Yet  out  of  ways  like 
these  tliere  never  could  arise  the  establishment  of  any  law,  if 
we  are  to  thrust  out  those  who  prevail  justly,  and  bring  the 
hindmost  to  the  foremost  rank  ;  no,  all  this  must  we  check. 
For  'tis  not  the  stout,  nor  the  broad-backed  men  that  arc 
most  safe  ;*  no,  the  men  of  good  counsel  every  where  prevail. 
And  the  large-sided  ox  goes  straight  along  the  road  guided  by 
a  whip,  though  small.  And  on  thee  I  behold  this  medicine 
quickly  stealing,  unless  thou  get  thee  some  understanding, 
thou  who  for  a  man  now  no  more,  but  already  a  shadow,  art 
confident  in  insolence  and  in  tongue  unbridled.  Wilt  thou 
never  be  humble  ?  wilt  thou  not,  having  learned  what  bv  birth 
thou  art,-  bring  hither  some  one  else  of  gentle  blood,  v^dio  in 
thy  stead  shall  speak  to  us  thy  words  1  for  I  can  no  longer  un- 
derstand while  thou  speakest,  since  I  am  not  acquainted  with 
the  barbarians'  tongue.^ 

^  Ulysses,  in  Shakespeare,  thus  remarks  on  the  false  pride  of  Ajax  and 
Achilles  : 

So  that  the  ram,  that  batters  down  the  wall, 
For  the  great  swing  and  rudeness  of  his  poise. 
They  place  before  the  hand  that  made  the  engine, 
Or  those  that  with  the  fineness  of  their  souls, 
By  reason  guide  his  execution. 

Troilus  and  Cressida,  Act  1,  so.  3. 
'  Satis  contumeliose  hsec  ab  Agamemnone  proferuntur.     Ser\i  enim, 
qualem  Teucrum  traducit,  non  poterant  Athenis  in  concione  causam  di- 
cere.     Conf.  Ter.  Phorm.  2.  1.  G2. — ^^'esseling. 

•*  Ao-amemnon  sneers  at  Teucer  for  his  descent  from  a  foreign  mother  ; 
f/herein  Sophocles  appears  rather  to  have  consulted  the  manners  and  prej- 
udices of  his  own  age  than  that  which  he  is  describing.  Not  unlike  this 
IftMnt  is  liotspur's  observation  to  Glendower; 


280  AJAX.  [12G4— 1290. 

Cii.  Oh  that  ye  had  both  of  you  the  sense  to  be  temperate, 
for  than  this  I  liave  nothing  better  to  advise  you. 

Teu.  Ahis !  how  speedily  does  all  grateful  memory  of  the 
dead  fade  away  among  mankind,  and  is  found  to  have  de- 
serted him ;  if  at  least  this  man  no  longer,  not  even  in  tri- 
lling matters,  Ajax,  remembers  thee,  for  whom  thou  many  a 
time  didst  toil  with  the  spear,  exposing  thy  lil'c  !  But  all  this 
is  now  past  and  gone,  thrown  by  in  scorn.  O  thou  that  hast 
just  uttered  words  many  and  profitless,  rememberest  thou  no 
longer  aught,  when  Ajax  here  once  came  and  alone  delivered 
you,  pent  up  within  your  barriers,^  already  as  nothing  in  the 
rout  of  battle ;  when  fire  was  blazing  around  the  ships,  even 
then  on  the  topmost  benches  of  the  seamen  ;  and  Hector,  past 
the  trenches,  Avas  leaping  high  upon  the  naval  hulks !  Who 
repelled  all  this?  AYas  it  not  he  that  did  it?  he  who,  thou 
sayest,  nowhere  even  set  foot  to  foot  ?  What !  "were  not  these 
justly  his  deeds  in  your  behalf?  And  when  again  he  singly, 
against  Plector  single-handed,  by  lot  and  not  by  command 
selected,  went  forth  to  cope  with  him ;  having  deposited  in 
the  midst  no  clod  of  clammy  earth, ^  his  skulking  lot,  but  one 
that  was  sure  the  first  to  bound  with  light  spring  from  the 
crested  helmet !  He  it  was  performed  these  deeds ;  and  with 
him  at  his  side,  I,  the  slave,  the  offspring  of  a  barbarous  moth- 
er. Wretch !  whither  looking,  canst  thou  prate  of  this  ? 
Knowest  thou  not  that  the  father  that  begot  thy  father,  Pelops 
of  old,  was  a  Phrygian  barbarian ;  and  Atreus,  who  in  turn 
begat  thee,  was  the  most  impious  of  men,  who  set  before  his 
brother  a  repast  of  his  own  children  1  And  thou  thyself  wert 
born  of  a  Cretan  mother,^  with  whom  the  father  that  begot 

Who  shall  say  mc  nay  ^ 
Gi.EN.  Why,  that  will  I. 
Hot.     Let  mc  not  understand  you  then  : 

Speak  it  in  ^\cIsh. 

First  Part  of  Henry  IV.  Act  3,  sc.  1. 

^  See  Homer,  II.  12,  for  tlic  account  of  Ajax'  repulse  of  Hector  ;  and 
in  the  14th  book  we  find  a  disgraceful  llight  by  night  proposed  by  Aga- 
memnon, but  objected  to  by  Ulysses. 

^  This  is  an  anachronism,  and  alludes  to  the  deceit  practiced  by  Cres- 
phontes  in  furtherance  of  his  gaining  Mcsscnia  to  his  share  in  the  divis- 
ion of  Peloponnesus  by  the  HeraclidtB.     A|)ollod.  Q.  8,  Pausan.  IV.  3. 

^  The  term  "  Cretan,"  from  the  days  of  P  ito  (vid.  Schol.  ad  Aristoph. 
Aw.   Toi'  (xaivofievov,   Tor    Kp~/Ta,   Tap  fjo]  i(,"  'Arr/A-or)  to   those  of  St. 


1297—1325]  AJAX.  281 

her  liaving  taken  a  strange  seducer,  cast  her  aAvay  a  prey  to 
dumb  fishes.  And  dost  thou,  being  such,  reproach  ^vith  their 
family  such  as  I  am  ?  I  that  am  by  birth  the  son  of  Telamon, 
wlio  having  gained  the  first  prize  of  valor  in  the  host,  takes 
as  the  partner  of  his  bed  my  mother,  a  princess  by  birtli, 
cliild  of  Laoraedon.  Pier,  a  selected  present,  the  son  of  Alc- 
mona  cave  liim.  And  can  I,  thus  the  most  excellent  off- 
spring  of  two  of  the  most  excelling,  disgrace  my  kindred  by 
blood,  whom,  j^rostrate  in  woes  like  these,  thou  spurnest  forth 
iinburied,  nor  blushed  for  thy  words  %  Be  well  assured  then 
of  this,  that  if  ye  shall  cast  forth  any  where  this  body,  ye 
shall  with  it  cast  out  us  three^  b'i'^S  ^^  l^^s  ^^^^  5  since  it  is  for 
my  honor,  laboring  in  Ajax'  behalf,  to  die  gloriously,  rather 
than  for  thy  wife's  sake,  or,  I  tell  thee,  thy  brother's.  Then 
look  not  to  my  situation  only,  but  to  thine  own ;  since  if  thou 
shalt  do  me  aught  of  harm,  thou  wilt  one  day  wish  thou  hadst 
been  a  coward  rather  than  bold  against  me. 

Cii.  Prince  Ulysses,  know  thou  hast  come  in  season,  if 
thou  art  here  not  to  embroil,  but  to  join  in  loosing^  [the  quar- 
rel]. 

Ul.  What  is  it,  friends?  for  from  afar  I  heard  the  clamor 
of  the  Atrida)  over  this  valiant  corpse. 

Ag.  Yes  ;  for  are  we  not  hearing  the  most  opprobrious 
v/ ords,  king  Ulysses,  from  this  fellow  here,  even  now  ? 

Ul.  Of  what  sort  ?  for  I  can  grant  indulgence  to  the  man 
who  hears  bad  words,  with  ill  words  to  match  them. 

Ag.  He  hath  heard  his  shame,  for  shamefully  he  treated  me. 

Ul.  Why,  what  hath  he  done  to  thee  that  thou  hast  in^ 

jury  ^ 

Paul,  appears  to  have  been  a  term  of  more  than  common  reproach.  Ly- 
cophron  calls  Menelaus  a  half-Cretan,  from  his  mother  Aerope,  whom  her 
father  having  detected  in  an  intrigue  with  a  domestic,  gave  to  Nauplius, 
with  injunctions  to  throv/  her  overboard  out  at  sea  ;  but  he  disobeyed  the 
mandate,  and  betrothed  her  to  Plisthenes,  son  of  Atreus.  For  Agamem- 
non and  Menelaus  are  said  to  have  been  the  grandchildren  of  Atreus,  and 
not,  as  commonly  supposed,  his  sons,  although  considered  and  treated  as 
such  by  him. — Tr.  On  this  contempt  of  the  Cretans,  see  the  Comm.  on 
Callimach.  in  Jov.  8. — B. 

^  Himself,  Tecmessa,  and  Eurysaces  ;  for  what  the  scholiast  says  of 
the  words  being  a  threat,  and  having  reference  to  the  Atrida;,  is  too  far- 
fetched ;  nor  were  the  latter  fallen  down  by  Ajax'  side,  which  he  had  in- 
structed Eurysaces  to  do. 

^  ///)  belongs  to  ^vvdij-cji'  only.     See  Wunder. — B. 


282  AJAX.  [1326—1353 

Ag.  lie  denies  that  lie  will  leave  this  dead  body  destitute 
of  burial,  but  will  inter  it  in  spite  of  me. 

Ul.  Is  it  then  allowed  a  friend,  having  spoken  the  truth,  to 
be  no  less  thy  friend  than  before?^ 

Ag.  Say  on  ;  else  were  I  not  in  my  right  mind  ;  since  I  ac- 
count thee  the  greatest  friend  of  the  Greeks. 

Ul.  Listen  now.  By  the  gods  I  implore,  have  not  the 
heart  thus  pitilessly  to  cast  out  unburied  this  Ajax,  and  let 
not  violence  by  any  means  prevail  on  thee  so  far  to  hate  him 
as  to  trample  on  justice.  For  to  mc  also  he  once  was  of  all 
the  army  the  bitterest  foe,  from  the  time  I  became  master  of 
Achilles'  arms ;  and  yet,  though  such  he  Avas  to  me,  I  would 
not  so  far  dishonor  him  as  not  to  say  that  he,  and  no  other, 
was  the  bravest  of  all  the  Greeks  I  have  looked  on,  as  many 
of  us  as  came  to  Troy,  except  Achilles  ;  and  therefore  he 
may  not,  in  justice  at  least,  be  disgraced  by  thee.  For  thou 
wouldst  not  injure  him  at  all,  but  the  laws  of  the  gods :  nor  is 
it  just  to  wrong  the  brave  man,  if  he  be  dead,  although  thou 
chance  to  hate  him. 

Ag.  Dost  thou,  Ulysses,  thus  in  behalf  of  this  man  contend 
with  me? 

Ul.  I  do.     I  hated  him,  while  to  hate  was  honorable. 

Ag.  What,  and  oughtest  thou  not  also  to  insult  him 
dead? 

Ul.  Joy  not,  son  of  Atreus,  over  vantages  not  honor- 
able. 

Ag.  Look  thou,  for  a  despot  to  be  religious  is  no  easy  mat- 
ter.2 

Ul.  But  it  is  to  pay  respect  to  friends,  who  advise  well. 

Ag.  The  virtuous  man  should  obey  those  in  oflice. 

Ul.  Have  done.^  Thou  conquerest,  believe  me,  in  yielding 
to  thy  friends. 

^  Literally,  "  to  pull  together  with  thee." 

'  "  The  poet  seems  to  have  inserted  this  sentiment  willi  a  view  rather  to 
the  gratification  of  his  audience  than  to  the  consistency  of  the  character."' 
— Hermann,  who  takes  evaejSelu  apparently  as  transitive,  against  the  opin- 
ion of  Valckenacr  and  others.  There  seems  no  reason  to  suppose  that 
Soj)hocles  aUuded  to  Cleon  here.  With  better  reason,  a})parcntly,  Her- 
mann thinks  tliat  demagogue  glanced  at  in  lines  1338  and  1340,  for  liis 
conduct  toward  tlic  Lesbians,  etc. 

^  The  word  rravcjai  here  oflends  some  of  tlic  commentators  as  indicative 


1:551—1370.]  AJAX.  283 

Ag.  Remember  to  what  kind  of  man  tliou  grantest  this 
favor. 

Ul.  This  man  was  mine  enemy,  yet  sometime  noble. 

Ag.  "Wiiat  canst  thou  possibly  mean  to  do  ?  Dost  thou 
thus  respect  the  corpse  of  a  foe  ? 

Ul.  Yes ;  for  his  valor  far  transcends  my  hatred. 

Ag.  Yet  men  like  these  are  in  the  world's  eye  dotards. 

Ul.  !Nay,  surely  there  are  many  now  friends,  but  afterward 
enemies. 

Ag.  Dost  thou  then  approve  of  making  such  as  these  thy 
friends  ? 

Ul.  I  am  not  wont  to  approve  of  an  obdurate  spirit. 

Ag.  This  dav  wilt  thou  demonstrate  us  to  be  cowards. 

Ul.  Nay,  rather  to  all  the  Greeks  as  men  of  justice. 

Ag.  Dost  thou  then  desire  me  to  suffer  them  bury  the 
corpse  ? 

Ul.  I  do  ;  for  I  myself  also  shall  come  to  this. 

Ag.  Hov,'  every  man  labors  all  things  suitably  to  him- 
self I^ 

Ul.  Yes ;  for  whom  is  it  more  reasonable  I  should  labor 
than  for  myself? 

Ag.  Shall  not  this  then  be  called  thy  act,  not  mine  ? 

Ul.  As  thou  shalt  do  it,  shalt  thou  every  where  be  esteem- 
ed meritorious. 

Ag.  Nay  then,  be  well  assured  of  this  at  least,  that  I  would 
bestow  on  thee  a  greater  boon  than  this  ;  but  that  man,  wheth- 
er here  or  there,  will  still  be  by  me  most  hated ;  but  it  is  al- 
lowed thee  to  act  as  is  requisite. 

Ch.  Whoever,  Ulysses,  denies  that  thou  art  naturally  wise 
of  counsel,  being  such  as  thou  art,  is  a  fool. 
I      Ul.  However  to  Teucer  I  declare  that  from  this  time  forth 

of  too  little  respect  on  the  part  of  Ulysses  to  his  commander.  Her.co 
Markland  would  read  Yldcaig,  Omnibus  suffragns,  and  Musgrave  JIaevcel 
KpclTiarov,  optime  navigabis ;  but  these  emendations  are  by  no  means  rec- 
uisitc.  V.  CEd.  Tyr.  630;  Eur.  And.  G92.  This  sentiment  is  explain- 
ed by  Thucydides,  L.  4,  c.  20.  "  For  to  those  who  are  easily  induced 
to  make  concessions,  men  are  naturally  inclined  to  yield  in  their  turii, 
and  that  v^'ilh  pleasure."' 

^  Lobeck  considers  this  as  ironical  in  Agamemnon,  who  would  insinu- 
ate that  the  present  magnanimity  of  Ulysses  was  inconsistent  with  his 
character. 


284  AJAX.  [1377—1407. 

I  am  as  much  his  friend  as  ere  new  I  was  his  foe  ;-  and  I  wish 
to  help  bniy  this  dead  body  here,  to  share  the  labor,  and  omit 
nothing  of  all  that  is  man's  duty  to  care  for  in  honor  of  the 
noblest  of  mankind. 

Teu.  Most  excellent  Ulysses!  'tis  mine  to  give  thee  all 
manner  of  commendation  in  words,  and  thou  hast  much  belied 
my  expectation ;  for  being  of  Greeks  the  man  most  hostile  to 
this  my  brother,  thou  alone  hast  stood  by  him  with  thy  exer- 
tions, nor  hast  had  the  heart  here  alive  greatly  to  insult  him 
dead,  as  that  our  mad-stricken  general,  coming  himself  and 
his  brother  also,  Avere  desirous  to  have  cast  him  cut  insulted 
without  sepulture.  Wherefore  may  the  sire  that  rules  this 
Olympus,  and  mindful  Erinnys,  and  Justice  accomjilishing 
her  end,  bring  the  Avretches  to  a  wretched  doom,  even  as  they 
were  desirous  unworthily  and  in  contemptuous  sort  to  cast  out 
Ajax.  But,  O  seed  of  Laertes,  thine  aged  sire,  I  dread  to 
allow  of  thy  having  a  hand  in  this  funeral,  lest  this  I  do  dis- 
pleasing to  the  dead,2  but  in  all  else  act  w^ith  me ;  and  if  thou 
wilt  that  any  one  of  the  army  attend  him  forth,  I  shall  not 
feel  hurt  at  it.  But  for  all  the  rest  myself  will  take  order ; 
and  be  thou  assured  that  in  my  esteem  thou  art  a  worthy 
man. 

Ul.  Nay,  I  could  indeed  have  wished  it ;  but  if  it  be  not 
pleasing  to  thee  that  I  should  do  this,  1  will  be  gone,  acquies- 
cing in  thy  views. 

Teu.  Enough ;  for  already  has  much  time  elapsed ;  but 
do  some  of  you  speed  with  your  hands  the  hollow  grave,  and 
others  set  on  the  fire  the  high-standing  tripod,  of  use  for  the 
haly  ablutions ;  and  let  one  troop  of  men  bring  forth  from  the 

'  Thus  Aufidius  over  the  dead  body  of  Coriolanus,  whom  he  had  slain  : 

My  rage  is  gone, 
And  I  am  struck  with  sorrow.     Take  him  up  : 
Help,  three  o'  the  chiefest  soldiers  :  I'll  be  one. 

Coriol.  Act  5,  so.  5. 
'  The  ancients  were  very  scrupulous  in  their  respect  to  the  manes  of 
the  dead.  Hence  Philostratus,  speaking  of  these  very  events,  has  the  fol- 
lowing passage  :  "  He  (Ulysses)  having  brought  the  armor  of  Achilles  to 
Ajax  when  laid  out  for  interment,  and  having  burst  into  tears,  '  There,  be 
thou  buried,'  said  he,  'in  the  arms  thou  didst  love  so  well ;  and  be  thine 
the  victory  in  them,  nor  let  thy  spirit  feel  aught  of  resentment.'  ^\'llere- 
iipon,  the  Greeks  applauding  Ulysses,  Tcucer  joined  in  their  praises  of 
b.ini,  but  declined  the  gift  of  the  armor  on  the  plea  that  what  caused  his 
death  v/as  unfit  to  grace  his  burial.     Heroicc.  C.  II.  3. 


1403— 1419.J  AJA.X.  285 

tent  liis  mailed  garniture.  But  do  thou,  cliild,  with  aifection 
grasping  thy  lather  as  well  as  thou  hast  strength  to,  ease  this 
his  side  with  me  ;  for  yet  do  the  Avarm  gaslics  exhale  a  black 
gore.  But  come  every  one  that  says  he  is  here  a  friend,  let 
liim  hurry,  let  him  go,  toiling  for  this  hero,  in  all  things  good, 
and  for  none  among  mankind  more  excellent  than  Ajax,^ 

Cii.  How  many  things  is  it  man's  by  seeing  to  know!  but 
ere  he  have  seen,  there  is  no  prophet  of  the  future  as  to  what 
it  will  bring  to  pass. 

^  The  \vord5?  "XtavTog,  '"it''  yv,  rore  (jxjvcj,  arc  thrown  out  by  Dindorf 
and  Wunder. — B. 


fl-i4 


P II I L  0  C  T  E  T  E  S. 


The  sufferings  of  Philoctetcs  on  the  island  of  Lcmnos,  whither  he  had 
been  brought  by  Ulysses,  in  obedience  to  the  oracular  advice  of  Hele- 
nus,  and  his  being  led  away  from  thence  by  Ulysses  in  company  with 
Neoptoleinus.^ — 13. 


DRAMATIS  PERSON.^. 


Ulysses. 

Neoftolemui 

Chorus. 


Philoctetes. 

Spy  as  a  Merchant. 

Kercules. 


Ulysses.  This  is  the  shore  of  the  Avave-encircled  land  of 
Lemnos,  untrodden  by  man,  and  nninhiibited,  where,  O  thou 
reared  from  a  sire  the  mightiest  of  Greeks,  Neoptolemus,  thou 
son  of  Achilles,  I  once  set  on  shore,  having  been  appointed 
to  do  this  by  the  princes,  the  son  of  Poias  the  Melian,-  run- 
ning at  the  foot  with  a  corroding  disease,  Avhen  it  was  not 
possible  for  us  to  set  ouy  h.and  either  to  libation'^  or  sacrifice 
unmolested,  but  continually  did  he  fill  tlie  Avhole  camp  with 
wild  and  ill-omened  cries,  shriekiu";  and  irroanincr.  Yet  what 
need  is  there  to  speak  of  this?  For  'tis  no  season  for  length 
of  vrords  to  us,  lest  he  learn  that  I  am  come,  and  I  waste 
our  whole  artifice,  \yy  which  I  expect  I  presently  shall  ensnare 

^  I  must  observe  tliat  this  play,  from  the  evidently  disturbed  arrarige- 
ment  of  the  dialogue,  and  the  many  verbal  corruptions  with  winch  it  is 
replete,  is  one  of  the  most  diflicult  to  deal  with.  This  will  perhaps  serve 
as  an  apology  for  the  greater  attention  to  critical  details,  than  in  the  pre- 
vious plays. — B. 

'  Philoctetes  is  said  by  some  to  have  accompanied  the  Argonautic  ex- 
pedition, and  was  certainly  the  armor-bearer  and  particular  friend  of  Her- 
cules ;  which  must  either  bring  the  dates  of  the  Argonautic  voyage  and 
Trojan  war  nearer  each  other  than  they  arc  generally  placed,  or  present 
liim  a  very  aged  candidate  for  the  hand  of  Helen. 

^  Distinctly  mentioned,  because  libations  v.ere  made  on  all  the  petty 
.-affairs  of  life,  at  the  reception  of  a  stranger,  or  on  going  to  bed  ;  Facri' 
fices,  on  account  of  tl:eir  crcpcnsc,  only  on  great  occasions. 


i5— 3G.]  PHILOCTETES.  -  287 

hiiii.  But  now  it  is  thv  business  tw  serve  me  in  the  rest,  and 
to  spy  out  where  hereabouts  is  the  cavern  of  double  mouth,  of 
such  a  nature  as  that  there  in  cold  weather  is  at  hand  a  double 
place  to  sit  in  the  sun,  and  in  the  summer  the  breeze  wafts 
slumber  throuoh  the  vault  hollowed  throughout. ^  But  a  little 
way  below,  on  the  left,  thou  mightest  haply  see  a  pure  fount- 
ain, if  it  yet  be  preserved.  Which  approaching  silently,  sig- 
ni iy  to  me  whether  yet  he  keeps  to  this  very  same  spot,  or 
whether  he  happens  to  be  elsev.diere,  that  thou  mayest  hear, 
and  I  instruct  thee  in,  the  residue  of  my  counsels,  and  the  bu- 
siness in  common  may  proceed  by  means  of  both. 

Neoptole.mi-s.  O  king  Ulysses,  thou  speakest  of  no  distant 
labor,  since  1  fancy  I  perceive  a  cavern,  such  as  thou  hast 
mentioned. 

Ul.  Above  or  below  ?   for  I  do  not  discern  it. 

Ne.  Here  above  us,  and  there  is  at  least  no  noise-  of  a 
footstep. 

Ul.   See  whether  he  chance  to  be  laid  down  to  sleep. 

Ne.  I  see  a  dwelling-place  empty  and  void  of  men. 

Ul.  Is  there  not  some  home-made^  sustenance  within  ? 

Ne.  At  anv  rate  there  are  trodden  leaves,  as  if  for  romo 
one  Vr'ho  sleeps  there. 

Ul.  But  is  all  else  deserted,  and  nothing  beneaih  the 
roof  ? 

Ne.  There  is  a  drinking-vessel  all  of  wood,  the  workman- 
ship of  some  sorry  craftsman,^  and  together  with  it  these  ma- 
terials for  lifihtino;  a  fire.^ 

^  The  difficulty  here  lies  in  the  looseness  of  the  expression,  which  would 
more  simply  have  been,  iva  6l~/J/  TzupeoTtv  eiOuicTjcig,  [fi'f]  fziv  rj/.tou 
£-j  il'vx^t,  [f/f  St:  (/]  mofj  7Tt:u-ct,  k.  r.  /.,  i.  c,  '•  ubi  duplex  sit  sessio,  una 
quidem,  hyemis  tempore,  solem  versus,  una  vero,  ubi  sestate  soporem  in- 
dacat  aura;"  rj/lov  is  the  genitive  of  place  or  reference. — B. 

^  i.  £.,  Neoptolemus  hears  no  one  stirring  within. — B. 

^  QiKOnOLor  must  here  be  taken  passively,  cihus  domi  paratus,  as  60/.6- 
TTOtog  avayK-jj  in  the  Trachmise,  dolur  fraudc  comparatus . — Tr.  Wunder 
takes  it  passively,  but  prefers  the  conjecture  of  Welcker  (and  Burgcs), 
~pv6)j. — B. 

*  It  appears,  then,  that  Ulysses  had  at  least  one  point  of  superiority  over 
the  unfortunate  man  over  v/hom  he  had  exercised  such  rigor,  that  of  be- 
ing a  better  carpenter.     See  Odyss.  XXIII. 

^  '"The  materials  in  question  were  two  flints  (see  v.  296).  and  some 
tinder,  made  of  burned  rags,  as  appears  from  the  words  following  :  ical 
racTu  y'  Cu.Aa — ^u.ki]."' — Burges. — B. 


288  PHILOCTETES.  [37— G5. 

Ul.  Tins  store  that  llioii  tcllcst  mc  of  is  his. 

Ki:.  Ahis,  lilas  !  Here  are  besides  these  ra^rs  clryinii,  full  of 
some  ofiensivc  matter  from  a  sore. 

Ul.  The  man  evidently  is  an  inhabitant  of  these  parts,  and 
is  somewhere  not  far  oil".  For  how  should  a  lame  man,  dis- 
eased with  a  fatal  malady,  of  old  standing,  go  out  to  any  dis- 
tance? No,  but  either  for  food  hath  he  gone  forth  on  his 
wa}',^  or  if  he  knows  of  some  pain-assuaging  plant  any  wdicre. 
Send,  therefore,  the  man  who  is  here  to  spy  out,'-  that  he  may 
not  light  on  me  unobserved,  since  he  had  rather  lay  hands  on 
me  than  all  the  otlier  Greeks. 

Ke.  Nay,  he  is  both  on  his  way  thither,  and  the  path  shall 
be  watched ;  but  do  thou,  if  thou  desircst  aught,  instruct  me 
by  thy  next  words. 

Ul.  Son  of  Achilles,  it  becomes  thee  to  act  a  brave  part  in 
the  work  for  which  thou  hast  come,  not  merely  in  thy  person, 
but  if  thou  shouldst  hear  aught  new,  whereof  thou  hast  not 
heard  before,  to  lend  aid  therein,  since  thou  art  here  an  as- 
sistant. 

Ne.  What  then  dost  thou  bid  me  do  ? 

Ul.  It  needs  thou  [consider]  how  speaking  thou  shalt  by 
i\'rj  v.ords  cajole  the  mind  of  Philoctetes.  When  he  asks  thee 
w^ho  and  v.dience  thou  art,  say,  "  the  son  of  Achilles"  (this 
must  not  be  concealed),  "  and  that  thou  art  sailing  home- 
"ward,  having  abandoned  the  naval  armament  of  the  Greeks, 
liating  tliem  with  great  hatred,  for  thsit  having  with  suppli- 
cations fetched  tliee  to  come  from  tliy  home,  possessing  tiiese 
only  means  of  taking  Troy,  they  tliought  thee  not  worthy  of 
Aciiiiles'  arms,  \o  give  them  thee  when  arrived  and  of  right 
demanding  them  ;  but  on  the  contrary  transferred  them  to 
Ulysses"-^ — venting  whatever  abuse,  the  lowest  of  the  lov.^,*^ 

'  Suidas,  quoted  by  Wunder,  vboToq  ....  uaraxpi^GTLKCJg  ?/  dcpi^tg 
clrro  TuTTov  elg  tuttov.     See  Hcrinarin. — B. 

-  A  mute  personage,  who  had  accompanied  llicni  — 13. 

•'  The  contest  concerning  the  arms  ot"  Aclulles  was  solely  between  Ajax 
and  l/lysscs  ;  \vc  have  no  account  that  Neoptolemus  laid  claim  to  them. 
As  Phih)Ctetes,  however,  had  been  absent  during  tlic  whole  ali'air,  1  lysscs 
wa.s  at  liberty  to  substitute  Neoptolemus  in  tiic  room  of  Ajax,  especially 
as  his  being  the  son  of  Achilles  r.atuniiiy  j-Kstificd  his  pretensions  to  the 
arms  of  his  father.     The  fiction  v.as  therefore  probable. — Franklin. 

*  (Hoster,  in  his  instructions  to  Burkii;;;t;;an  to  pave  the  v,aY  for  liis 
assumption  of  the  crown,  goes  even  farther  than  this,  and  cominisisionj 


L 


60— 03.  J  PHIL0CTETE3.  289 

thou  wilt  against  mc.  For  in  nothing  of  all  this  wilt  thou 
pain  nic ;  but  if  tliou  wilt  not  do  this,  thou  wilt  strike  sorroAV 
into  all  the  Greeks.  For  if  the  bow  and  arrows  of  this  man 
be  not  procured,  it  is  not  for  thee  to  sack  the  Dardan^  plain. 
But  that  I  have  not,  and  thou  hast  sure  and  safe  communion 
with  tliis  man,  learn  of  me.  Thou  hast  sailed,  bound  by 
oath  to  none,  nor  on  compulsion,^  nor  on  the  first  expedition ; 
but  none  of  these  can  be  denied  by  me.  So  that  if,  while 
master  of  his  weapons,  he  shall  discover  me,  I  am  undone, 
and  shall  involve  thee  in  my  ruin  by  being  with  thee.  But 
this  veiy  point  must  be  cunningly  devised,  that  thou  mayest 
be  by  stealth  the  possessor  of  the  resistless  arms.  I  am  aware, 
O  youth,  that  thou  art  not  naturally  inclined  to  utter  such 
words,  nor  to  contrive  evil.  But,  for  in  sooth  it  is  delightful 
to  gain  the  possession  of  victory,  dare  it,^  but  afterward 
again  will  we  show  ourselves  upright.  Now,  however,  for  the 
brief  portion  of  a  day  resign  thyself  to  me  unto  shamelessness, 
and  then  for  after  time  be  called  the  most  religious  of  all 
men. 

Ne.  Son  of  Laertes,  the  words  which  I  grieve  to  hear, 
them  also  I  abhor  to  practice.  For  my  nature  is  to  do  noth- 
ing Avith  evil  treachery,  neither  mine  own,  nor,  as  they  say, 
my  father's  that  begot  irie.  But  I  am  ready  to  carry  off  the 
man  by  violence,  and  not  by  craft ;  for  he  will  not  with  but 
one  foot  overpower  so  many  as  we  are  by  force.  Yet  still, 
having  been  sent  as  thy  coadjutor,  I  dread  being  called  thy  be- 
trayer ;  but,  O  prince,  I  had  rather  fail  acting  nobly,  than 
basely  prevail. 

Ul.  Son  of  a  noble  father,  I  too  formerly  in  youth  possessed 

him  to  charge  his  (Gloster's)  own  mother  with  adultery. — Rich.  III.  Act 
3,  sc.  5. 

'  Dardanus  was  son  to  Jupiter  by  Electra,  and  the  founder  of  the  Tro- 
jan race. 

=  Such  was  Echepolus,  Honi.  II.  XXIII.  293  : 

Then  Menelaus  his  Podargus  brings, 
And  the  famed  courser  of  the  king  of  kings, 
Whom  rich  Echepolus  (more  rich  than  brave), 
To  'scape  the  war,  to  Agamemnon  gave. — Pope. 

^  It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  Ulysses  should  recommend  this  con- 
\luct  to  Neoptolemus,  since  at  v.  1049  we  find  him  glorying  in  it  as  his 
own  svstem  of  action. 

N 


200  PKILOCTETES.  [97—121 

a  slow  tongue  and  active  hand  ;^  but  nov/  having  gone  fortli  to 
the  test,  I  see  among  mankind  the  tongue  and  not  the  deeds, 
bearing  rule  in  every  tiling. 

Ink.  AVhat  else  tiien  hast  thou  bid  me  but  to  utter  false- 
hood ] 

Ul.  I  bid  thee  seize  Pliiloctetes  bv  stratajiem. 

Ne.  But  Avhat  needs  there  take  him  bj  stratagem  rather 
iian  persuasion  ? 
.  )    Ul.  Think  not  he  will  be  persuaded :  but  by  force  thou 
couldst  not  take  him. 

Ne.  Hath  he  then   confidence  in  his  strength  so  formida- 
ble? 

Ul.  He  hath  unerring  arrows  that  send  death. 

Ne.  What  then,  dare  not  one  even  approach  him? 

Ul.  No,  at  least  if  he  entrap  him  not  by  craft,  as  I  advise. 

Ne.    And  dost  thou  not  then  hold  it  base  to  utter  false- 
hood ? 

Ul.  No,  at  least  if  the  lie  brings  safety. 

Ne.  With  what  face  then  shall  one  dare  to  say  all  this? 

Ul.  When  thou  doest  auQ;ht  for  advantai;e,  it  suits  not  to 
recoil. 

Ne.  But  what  advantage  to  me  is  his  going  to  Troy? 

Ul.  These  weapons  alone  vril)  take  Troy. 

Ne.  What,  am  not  I  then  the  destined  destroyer,  as  ye  de- 
clared ? 

Ul.  Neither  couldst  thou  be  ^vitllout  them,  nor  they  ■with- 
out thee. 

Ne.  Then  must  they  be  our  pri'-<:e.  if  indeed  it  be  so. 

Ul.  Truly,  if  thou  do  this,  thou  wilt  get  thyself  ivro  re- 
wards. 

Ne.  Of  what  sort  ?  for,  having  learned,  I  -would  not  refuse 
the  doing  it. 

Ul.  Thou  wouldst  be  called  at  once  wise  and  good. 

Ne.  Be  it  so,  I  will  do  it,  having  laid  aside  all  shame. 

Ul.  Dost  thou  then  remember  all  that  I  liavc  advised  thee  ? 

*  Such  is  Shakespeare's  description  of  Troilus  : 

The  youngest  son  of  Priam,  a  true  knight, 
Not  yet  mature,  yet  matchless  :  linn  of  Avor'l ; 
Speaking  in  deeds,  but  decdless  in  his  tongue 

Troilus  and  Crcssida,  Act  -1.  cc.  J>. 


^ 


122— lir.]  PHILOCTETES.  291 

Xe.  Bg  assured  I  do,  now  tliat  I  have  once  consented^ 

Ul.  Do  tlioii  then  abiding  here  receive  him ;  but  I  will  be 
gone,  lest  being  present  I  be  discovered,  and  I  will  send  the 
spy^  back  again  to  the  ship.  And  hither  again,  if  ye  seem  to 
me  to  loiter  at  all  in  time,  I  will  send  out  this  same  man,  hav- 
ins:  riirf2:ed  him  out  in  appearance  after  the  manner  of  a  sliip's 
master,  that  he  may  not  be  recognized,  from  whom,  my  son, 
speaking  cunningly,^  gather  thou  of  his  words  from  time  to 
time  whate'er  may  profit  us.  But  I  will  go  to  the  vessel,  com- 
mitting all  this  to  thee ;  and  may  attendant  Mercury,  patron 
of  deceit,^  be  our  guide,  and  Victory  Minerva,^  patroness  of 
cities,  vv'ho  ever  protects  me. 

Chorus.  V^hat,  Avhat,  my  prince,  m.ust  I,  in  a  strange  land 
a  stranger,  hide,  or  what  say  to  the  suspicious  man  ?  tell  me. 
For  contrivance  surpasses  other  contrivance,*^  as  does  judgment, 
in  him  by  whomsoever  the  divine  sceptre  of  Jove  is  swayed. 
And  to  thee,  my  son,  this  fidl  power  from  olden  time  hath 
come :  Avherefore  declare  to  me"  in  what  it  is  needful  for  mc 
to  do  thee  service. 

Nf:.  Now,  for  hapiy  thou  dcsirest  to  look  on  the  spot  in  a 
region  so  remote,  wherein  he  lies,  look  boldly ;  but  when  the 
dread  wayfarer  shall  come,  emerging  from  these  his  haunts,^ 

^  Hermann  praises  here  the  art  of  the  poet  in  making  Ncoptolemus 
shrink  in  indignation  with  himself  from  again  hearing  advice  of  the  base- 
ness of  v>hich  he  is  conscious. 

2  Not  the  person  mentioned  v.  45,  but  a  servant  whom  Ulysses  had 
with  him. — Herm. — Tr.     Why  not  the  samel     See  Wundcr. — B. 

^  Uoud/Mr,  varie,  vcrstUc.  Thus  Livy  has  "  varie  agerc  ;"  and  in  Sal- 
lust  the  mind  of  Catiline  is  called  "varius." — Cat.  c.  5. 

*  Mercury  had  many  appellations  of  this  kind,  which  are  humorously 
mentioned  toward  the  close  of  the  Plutus  of  Aristophanes. 

^  Minerva  is  said  to  have  been  worshiped  in  her  temple  on  the  Acrop- 
olis under  this  name.  Her  second  title  w"as  derived  from  her  being  the 
foundress  of  Athens,  and  appears  therefore  in  the  mouth  of  the  speaker 
somewhat  misplaced.  Her  protection  of  Ulysses  is  well  knovv^n  :  v.  Ajax, 
L.  I.     II.  X.  279. 

^  co6i.a  6'  dv  co(plav 

Trapa^uEtipciev  dv?>p. — CEd.  Tyr.  v.  503. 

'  To  fxOL  Evveire,  pro  dta  tovto  ellipticri.  Vid.  Horn.  II.  III.  v.  17G  ; 
VII.  V.  239  ;   XVII.  v.  404.— Barby. 

^  To  the  translation  as  now  given,  Hermann  considers  it  no  objection 
that  the  Chorus  subsequently  asks  whether  Philoctetes  be  in  or  out  of 
doors,  inasmuch  as  it  was  natural  for  them,  in  such  a  place,  to  suspect  him 
of  lurking  somewhere  near. 


292  1-riILOCTETES.  [14S— 190. 

do  tliou,  ever  at  my  bcek,^  endeavor  to  be  of  present  serv- 
ice. 

Cii.  Thou  speakest,  O  prince,  of  a  care  by  me  long  since 
cared  for,  to  -watch  thine  eye  especially  for  thy  occasion.  But 
now  tell  me  in  ^^•hat  kind  of  dwelling  he  is  the  settled  inhab- 
itant, and  what  place  he  tenants ;  for  this  it  were  not  inoppor- 
tune for  me  to  learn,  lest  he  having  approached  from  any  quar- 
ter escape  my  notice.  What  spot,  or  what  abode  is  his?  AVhat 
path  takes  he?  within  his  dwelling,  or  without?-^ 

Ne.  This  habitation  with  double  entrance  of  the  rocky  lair 
that  thou  seest,  is  his. 

Cii.  And  where  is  the  wretched  man  himself  away  from  it? 

l!s  E.  It  is  clear  to  me  at  least  that  in  want  of  food  he  is  fur- 
rowing his  tread-^  hither,  somewhere  near;  for  report  sa}'S  that 
he  exercises  this  mode  of  sustenance,  sad  sadly  ^  shooting  beasts 
with  winged  arroAvs,  nor  docs  he  procure  him  any  healer  of 
his  woes. 

Cii.  I  truly  pity  him,  that,  no  mortal  caring  for  him,  nor 
having  any  companion  eye,  he  wretched,  ever  solitary,  sickens 
with  a  fierce  disease,  and  helplessly  languishes''  in  excry  want 
that  arises  to  him.  How,  how  does  the  hapless  man  ever  sup- 
port it  ?  O  toiling  hands  of  mortals !  O  luckless  race  of  men, 
to  whom  destiny  is  untoward!  He  perchance  being  inferior 
to  none,  though  of  the  noblest  houses,  destitute  of  all  in  life, 
lies  alone  apart  from  others,  "svith  the  dappled  or  the  shaggy 
beasts,  pitiable  both  in  pain  and  hunger,  possessed  of  an  incur- 
able toil :  while  Echo  with  her  babbling  tonn-ue  heard  afar  is 
borne  along  by  his  bitter  shrieks.^ 

^  Hermann  thinks  vrpug  x^^P^  ^^  ^^  the  same  v/ith  the  Latin  phrase  ad 
manum,  i.e.,  lit  statim  uli  tc  possim ;  and  renders  (pau^puTrdv  rrorl  x^'^P^ 
from  the  Agamemnon,  qui  prcEsto  est  hlari  vultu  ad  omiva  officia,  a  ver- 
sion few  admirers  of  ^-Eschylus  will  be  inclined  to  adopt. 

^  These  reiterated  questions  well  denote  the  dread  of  the  Chorus,  after 
they  have  been  already  informed  by  their  lord  himself  (v.  21)  that  Philoc- 
tetes  is  not  within. 

^  byfievELv  aTLfSov  est  viam  deinceps  prosequi,  similitudine  a  nietcnti- 
bus  repetita. — Herm. — Tr.     Cf  Xenoph.  Cyr.  II.  4,  40. — 13. 

*  cTvyepov  OTvyepiJg. — Herm. — Tu.  Wundcr  adopts  Brunck's  afivye- 
puv  afivyepug,  a  word  nowhere  used  in  Tragedy. — B. 

*  'AAvei,  u6t}/uov£i,  Schol.,  which  latter  word  is  used  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment to  express  the  vehemence  of  our  Savior's  agony. 

'  The  mockery  of  Echo  is  finely  imagined  here,  and  may  almost  bear  a 


191.^218]  PKILOCTETES.  29 


9 


Ne.  None  of  these  things  is  to  me  surprising,  for  they  are 
heaven-sent,  if  at  least  I  have  aught  of  judgment.  And  those 
sufferings  have  descended  on  him  from  cruel-minded  Chrjse  ;^ 
and  all  that  he  now  labors  under  deprived  of  tending  friends 
can  not  but  be  by  the  province  of  the  gods,  that  he  should  not 
aim  the  deities'  invincible  weapons'^  against  Troy  ere  the  time 
should  elapse  at  which  'tis  said  by  these  she  must  be  over- 
come. 

Cii.  Bo  silent,  my  son. 

Xe.  What's  this? 

Cir.  A  noise  arose  natural  to  man,  as  of  some  one  in  pain, 
somewhere  hereabouts,  or  there.  The  voice  strikes,  aye,  strikes 
upon  me  distinctly,  of  some  one  crawling  on  his  path  with 
much  ado,  nor  does  the  deep  utterance  of  a  worn-out  spkit 
from  afar  escape  me,  for  ovcr-loudly  it  resounds. 

Ch.  Take,  my  son — 

IsE.  Tell  me  what. 

Cii.  — thought  anew.  The  man  is  not  out  of  his  abode, 
but  in  the  place,  not  trolling  the  music  of  the  reed-pipe,  as  a 
rural  shepherd,  but  either  somewhere  stumbling,  for  violent 
pain-^  he  shrieks  his  far-echoing  cry,  or  destroying  our  vessel's 
inhospitable  station  ;  for  dreadful  is  his  outcry. 

comparison  with  the  suMimc  passage  from  an  Eastern  tale  which  Lord 
Byron  has  quoted  in  his  notes  to  the  Bride  of  Abydos,  n.  42.  The  order 
of  the  words  according  to  Hermann,  is,  a  6'  udvpocro/iog  dxio  v~d  rriKpu^ 
ol[.i(j)yug  ox^Itci-  Tj]7.e(^aviig,  i.  e.,  rrjAoae,  Lkel  (^aivoiievj]. — Tr.  I  have  fol- 
lowed Dindorf,  who  changes  trcjv  jSapel — a6'  d  0.  to  tx(^v  [Sup?}.  uc5'  ad 
and  v-oKELTat  to  v~'  ox^l'di-     V.  under  is  uncertain. — B. 

^  There  are  two  accounts  of  the  manner  in  which  Philoctetes  became 
thus  diseased.  The  one  which  Sophocles  appears  to  have  followed  states 
that  he  landed  on  an  island  near  Lemnos,  called  Chryse,  whereon  he  had 
been  directed  to  sacrifice  to  ^linerva  in  behalf  of  the  Greeks,  and  was 
bitten  by  a  serpent  that  guarded  the  spot.  The  other  attributes  his  mis- 
fortune to  the  vengeance  of  heaven,  for  his  having  disclosed,  by  stamping 
with  his  foot,  the  place  Vv'here  Hercules'  remains  had  been  interred,  which 
was  soon  followed  by  the  fall  of  one  of  his  patron's  arrov/s  on  the  guilty 
member. 

They  who  have  made  mention  of  ?\Iinerva  Chrysa  in  this  matter  have 
not  explained  v/hy  a  goddess  who  was  desirous  of  the  taking  of  Troy 
should  throw  an  obstacle  in  the  way  of  that  catastrophe  by  the  mischance 
of  Philoctetes. — Plerm. 

^  Hercules  received  his  bow  and  arrows  from  Apollo. 

^  ^oa  v~^  (Ivuyiccr,  "  praj  dolore."  Cf  v.  206.  Kar'  uvdyKav  eprzov-- 
roq. — B. 


}i)4:  PHILOCTETES.  [210— 24G. 


z'j 


PiiiLOCTETKS.  O  strangers,  v.ho  can  }-e  bo  that  with  mar- 
iner's oar  have  put  into  this  land,  neither  good  of  harborage 
nor  inhabited?'  For  what  possible  country  or  race  should 
I  be  riglit  in  saying  you  were?  For  the  array  of  your  dress 
is  tliat  of  Greece,  my  best-beloved :  but  I  would  hear  your 
voice;  and  do  not  recoiling  v/ith  horror  be  astounded  at  me 
thus  brutalized,  but  in  pity  to  an  unhappy  man,  lonely,  thus 
forlorn,  friendless,  and  in  pain,  speak  to  me,  if  indeed  ye  come 
as  friends.  But  answer  in  your  turn,^  for  it  is  not  just  that 
in  this  at  least  either  you  should  be  disappointed  in  me,  or  I 
in  vou. 

Ne.  But,  stranger,  know  this  first,  that  Vv'e  arc  Greeks,  for 
this  thou  vrouldst  learn. 

Til.  O  accents  most  dear !  Ah  !  to  think  that  I  should  hear 
the  voice  of  such  a  man  after  so  long  a  time  !  What  need, 
my  son,  put  thee  in,  what  brought  thee  hither?  What  im- 
pulse ?  AVhich  of  the  winds,  most  friendly  ?  Tell  me  all  this, 
that  I  may  know  who  thou  art. 

Ne.  I  am  by  birth  from  the  v^'ave-girt  Scyros,^  and  I  am 
sailing  homeward ;  and  am  called  the  son  of  Achilles,  Xeop- 
tolemus.     Now  thou  knowest  the  whole. 

Fii.  O  son  of  a  sire  most  dear,  of  a  land  beloved,  thou  nurs- 
ling of  the  aged  Lycomedes,  w^ith  what  armament  hast  thou 
touched  at  this  land  ?  whence  voyaging  ? 

Ne.  From  Ilion  then  now  at  least,  m.ark  me,  I  steer  my 
course. 

Ph.  IIovv^  sayest  thou  ?  For  surely  thou  w^crt  not  our  fel- 
low-sailor in  the  beoinnin";  of  our  vovacre  to  Trov. 

^  It  must  not  be  supposed,  from  these  and  similar  expressions  through- 
out the  pla}',  that  Lcuinos  was  entirely  uninhabited,  since  the  descend- 
ants of  the  Argonauts  dwelt  there — and  Homer  (Od.  VIII.  283)  calls  the 
island  tv/cTi/ievov  Trro/utOpov — but  only  those  parts  of  it  which  Philoc- 
tetes  inhabited,  whose  range  must  necessarily,  from  las  lameness,  have 
been  very  confmed. 

^  The  silence  of  Neoptolemus  in  this  place  is  caused  by  his  pity,  and 
the  necessity  of  recovering  himself,  in  order  to  play  his  part  in  the  strat- 
agem of  Ulysses. — Hermann. 

^  Scyros  is  an  island  of  the  ^Egcan.  about  thirty  miles  north  of  Eubosa, 
and  belonged  originally  to  the  l^clasgians  and  Carians  ;  it  was  thither 
that  Thetis  sent  Achiiics,  to  prevent  his  joining  the  armament  to  Troy, 
and  there  that  liero  became  father  of  Neoptolemus  by  Deidamia,  daughter 
of  Lycomedes,  the  king  of  the  island.  Neoptolemus  consequently  was 
educated  to  consider  Scyros  as  his  home,  although  Phthiotis  v>'as  his  fa- 
ther's inheritance. 


247—280]  PHILOCTETES.  295 

Ne.  Ho\\',  didst  thou  also  take  part  in  that  labor  ? 

Fn.  My  son,  knowest  tliou  not  mc,  on  whom  thou  lookesf? 

1\E.  AVliv  how  should  1  know  thee,  whom  I  have  never 
seen  before  ? 

Fh.  Vv^liat  ?  hast  thou  never  heard  my  name  even,  nor  any 
rumor  of  my  miseries,  whereby  I  was  ruined  ? 

Ne.  Be  assured  I  know  nothincs;  of  the  thimrs  of  wdiich  thou 
questionest  me. 

Fii.  O  greatly  wretched  that  I  am.,  and  hateful  to  the  gods, 
of  whom  thus  situated  not  even  a  report  has  reached  my 
home,  nor  any  where  else  in  the  land  of  Greece ;  but  they 
that  cast  me  impiously  away,  laugh  in  silence,  while  my 
disease  is  ever  virulent,  and  increases  more  and  more.  O 
child,  thou  son  of  Achilles  thy  father,  I  am  he  wdiom  thou 
perhaps  hearest  of  as  lord  of  the  arms  of  Hercules,  Fhiloc- 
tetes  the  son  of  Foias ;  whom  the  two  generals  and  the  Ce- 
phalenians'  king  have  thus  basely  cast  out  destitute, '^  wasting 
away  by  a  cruel  disease,  having  been  stricken  by  the  savage 
impressure  of  the  deadly  serpent,  wherewith  they,  my  son, 
having  put  me  on  shore  here  abandoned,  went  off,  at  the  time 
when  from  Ocean  Chryse  they  touched  here  'with  their  naval 
expedition.  Then  eagerly,  wdien  they  saw  me  after  much 
tossing  on  the  main  sleeping  upon  the  shore  within  an  o'er- 
arched  rock,  they  left  me  and  departed,  having  deposited  a 
few  rags  as  for  a  WTetch  like  me,  and  also  some  scanty  pit- 
tance of  food,2  such  as  O  that  they  might  have !  Thinkcst 
thou  then,  my  son,  with  what  an  awakement  I  rose  from  sleep 
at  that  time,  when  they  were  gone,  wliat  tears  I  Avept,  what 
dreadful  shrieks  I  uttered,  beholding  all  the  ships  gone,  com- 

*  Ulysses  followed  through  the  v/at'ry  road, 

A  chief  in  wisdom  equal  to  a  god, 
\\'ith  those  whom  Cephalcnia's  isle  inclosed, 
Or  till  their  fields  along  the  coast  opposed. 

Pope's  II.  C.  II.  76G. 

^  This  was  also  the  case  vvhen  any  one  among  the  ancients  was  con- 
demned to  be  buried  alive,  lest  pollution  should  come  upon  the  land,  as 
we  find  in  Antigone.  The  Romans  preserved  the  custom  in  their  treat- 
ment of  the  vestals  convicted  ofunchastity.  Hermann  translates  it,  "  such 
as  they  m.ight  happen  to  have." — Tr.  On  these  rags  of  Philoctetes, 
which  became  almo.st  proverbial,  Tvlatthis  appositely  refers  to  Aristoph. 
Acharn.  423,  ttoIg^  ttoI"  uin  p  /.aidoar  aiTclrcL  rrC-'/.uv  ;  uA/'  t)  ^L/.ourr]- 
Tov  7.i  ~()j  r:-ru;(a\)  '/.fyei'S. — B. 


29G  PKILOCTETES.  [281—310. 

manding  Avliicli  I  was  sailing,  and  not  a  human  being  on  the 
spot,  nor  one  to  assist  me,  nor  to  unite  in  easing  my  disease 
while  I  sufl'ered  with  it.^  But,  regarding  all  things,  I  found 
nought  present  but  affliction,  but  of  this,  my  son,  large  store. 
80  in  time  my  days  passed  on,  and  I  was  compelled  alone  to 
minister  every  thing  for  myself  under  this  humble  roof.  AVhat 
was  needful  for  my  stomach  this  bow  procured,  striking  down 
the  fluttering  doves ;  and  then  to  whatsoever  my  nerve-strung 
aiTOw  would  pierce,  I  hapless  would  roll  myself,^  dragging 
after  me  my  foot  tov.ard  it.  And  if  I  wanted  to  procure  me 
aught  to  drink,  and  when  the  frost  was  scattered,  as  in  winter, 
any  where  to  break  up  some  wood,  this  would  I  wretched 
creeping  forth  contrive.  Then  would  there  be  at  hand  no  lire, 
but  rubbing  stone  on  stone  hardly  did  1  elicit  the  hidden  light, 
which  ever  preserves  me.  For  this  covered  cave  inhabited  with 
fire  supplies  me  all  but  freedom  from  disease.  Come,  m.y  son, 
now  shalt  thou  learn  the  state  of  the  island.  To  this  no  mar- 
iner willingly  draws  near,  for  there  is  no  harbor,  nor  whither 
voyaging  he  may  traffic  for  gain,  or  be  hospitably  received. 
Nor  hither  are  the  voyages  of  the  prudent  among  n.en.  Kow 
haply  some  one  hath  against  his  Avill  touched  here,  for  many 
such  cases  might  occur  in  the  protracted  time  of  man.  These 
when  they  come,  my  son,  compassionate  me  indeed,  in  words, 
and  sometimes  in  pity  they  have  bestowed  on  me  in  addition 
some  portion  of  food,  or  some  raiment :  but  that  one  thing, 
when  I  shall  mention  it,  wills  none,  to  take  me  safe  home,  but 
wretched  I  am  perishing  noAV  this  the  tenth  year,  in  hunger 
and  in  misery  feeding  my  ravenous  malady.  Thus  have  the 
Atridai  and  Ulysses'  might,  my -son,  treated  me,  to  whom  may 
the  gods  of  heaven  one  day  give  themselves  to  suffer  a  requital 
of  my  wrongs.-^ 

^  For  the  construction  cf.  Eurip.  I\Icd.  047,  ^v/J.?/i};o/uaL  dk  tov6^  cot 
Kilycj  TTovGV.  Aristoph.  Vcsp.  733,  col  ...  .  ^v/./.a/njSuvei  rov  Trpay/ia- 
Tor.—B. 

-  "  El?.v6ij.T]v,  ab  el7.vo)  vol  cl/.i-fj.i,volco,  vcrto :  hinc  tt7.vopiai,  vcrto  vie, 
i.  c,  pro/LCiscor.  Imprimis  vero  de  dillicultcr  ct  Egrc  inccdentibus  dicilur, 
quarc  Hesychius  interpretatur  per  re-panodti^Eiv,  cf.  v.  702,  quern  locura 
Hesychius  forsitan  respexit." — Barby. 

^  Sophocles  does  not  mention  whether  or  no  Philoctctes  became  recon- 
ciled to  the  Atridffi  and  Ulysses  ;  but  this  his  curse  was  ampiy  ruHlllcd  on 
Agamemnon,  who  was  murdered  by  his  wife  ;  on  Ment  laus,  who  was  car- 
ried by  a  storm  to  Egypt,  and  was  eight  years  in  rcturniiig  to  Sparta  ;  and 
on  Ulysses,  whose  wandeiings  ar;d  distresses  arc  woil  knov.iL 


317— 3-15.J  PHILOCTETES.  297 

Cii.  Methinks  I  too,  son  of  Poias,  compassionate  thee  equal- 
ly Avith  the  strangers  that  have  arrived  hither. 

Ne.  Nay,  I  too  myself,  a  Avitness  to  thee  in  these  thy  words, 
know  they  are  true,  having  met  with  the  Atridte  and  the 
mighty  Ulysses  to  be  bad  men. 

Fir.  What,  hast  thou  also  any  charge  against  the  all-ac- 
cursed Atrida?,  so  as  beiim"  wronoed  to  feel  rage  at  them  *? 

Ne.  Be  it  mine  with  my  hand  to  glut  that  rage  one  day, 
that  both  Mycenae  and  Sparta  may  know  that  Scyros  too  is 
the  mother  of  puissant  men. 

Pii.  Well  done,  my  son  ;  and  for  what  cause  hast  thou 
come  laying  to  their  charge  this  thy  fierce  anger? 

Ne.  Son  of  Poias,  I  will  declare,  yet  hardly  can  I  speak,  the 
wrongs  wherewith  I  was  insulted  by  them  on  my  arrival.  For 
when  Fate  prevailed  that  Achilles  should  die — 

Pir.  Ah  me  !  tell  me  no  farther  ere  I  shall  have  learned  this 
first,  if  the  son  of  Peleus  be  dead. 

Np:.  He  is,  conquered  by  no  man,  but  stricken  down  by  the 
arrows  of  a  god,  as  they  report,  Apollo.^ 

Pit.  Nay  then,  noble  was  both  the  slayer  and  the  slain.- 
But  I  am  at  a  loss,  my  son,  whether  I  shall  first  inquire  into 
thy  sufferings,  or  mourn  him. 

Ne.  I  indeed  think  thine  own  gi*ievances  suffice  thee  at 
least,  unhappy  man,  so  that  thou  shouidst  not  bewail  thy 
neighbors'. 

Pii.  Thou  hast  said  rightly.  Wherefore  tell  me  again  and 
afresh  thy  matter  wherein  they  have  insulted  thee. 

Ne.  There  came  after  me  in  a  richly-decked-^  vessel  both 
the  noble  Ul}'sses  and  my  father's  guardian,^  asserting,  whether 

^  This  is  from  Homer,  who  makes  the  dying  Hector  utter  the  following 
prophecy  : 

Yet  think  a  day  w'iil  come,  when  Fate's  decree 
And  angry  gods  shall  wreak  this  wrong  on  thee  ; 
Phcebus  and  Paris  shall  avenge  my  fate, 
And  stretch  thee  here,  before  this  Scsean  gate. 

^  See  note  on  Ajax,  v.  970. 

^  As  GTu/.or  is  often  used  for  the  head  of  a  ship  [^Esch.  Pers.  406, 
^a?.Kj]p7]^  arS/.oc,  ct'.  uKpoaroMov,  Pindar  Pyth.  II.  114],  I  should  take 
TTOiKiAoaToXor  vai'g  in  the  sense  above  assigned,  with  Eustathius  and 
Wunder.  One  translator  thinks  it  equivalent  to  rro/.VKArj'i^,  which  seems 
forced. — 13. 

*  Phoenix.  s.T.i  <>(  Anvvntor.  king  of  Argos,  having  by  his  mother's  per- 

N2 


298  PHILOCTETES.  [340—373. 

true  indeed,  or  false,  that  it  cguld  not  come  to  pass,  since  my 
father  had  fallen,  tliat  any  other  but  I  should  take  Troy. 
This,  O  stranger,  they  stating  thus,  I  delayed  me  no  long 
time,  so  as  not  to  sail  speedily,  most  particularly  indeed  out 
of  aiFection  for  the  deceased,^  that  I  might  see  him  unhuried, 
for  I  had  never  beheld  him.  Kext,  hov/ever,  Fair  Kenown  pre- 
sented herself,  if  by  my  going  I  might  take  the  castle  of  Troy. 
And  now  it  was  the  second  day  of  my  voyage,  and  I  vrith 
'favoring  oar  vras  gaining  the  hateful  Sigajum,  when  instantly 
on  my  landing,  the  whole  army  in  a  circle  began  to  embrace 
me,  sv.-earing  that  they  beheld  alive  again  Achilles,  then  no 
more.2  There  then  was  he  lying.  But  I,  the  miserable,  not 
long  after  that  I  had  wept  over  him,  having  come  to  my 
friends  the  Atrida3,  as  was  reasonable,  demanded  of  them 
the  arms  of  my  father,  and  all  else  that  was  his.  But  they 
spake,  ah  me  !  most  shameless  words  :  "  Son  of  Achilles,  ail 
else  that  was  thy  father's  it  is  allowed  thee  to  take ;  but  of 
those  arms  another  warrior  now  is  master,  the  son  of  Laertes." 
And  I  in  tears  forthwith  rise  up  to  go  in  deep  resentment, 
and  indignant  answer,  "  AYretch !  and  have  ye  dared  to  give 
my  armor  to  any  in  my  stead,  ere  you  learned  my  pleasure  ?" 
But  Ulysses  said,  for  he  happened  to  be  close  by:  '-Yes,  boy, 
in  justice  have  they  given  me  these,  for  I  was  present  to  save 
them  and  their  master. 2"     And  I  enraged  instantly  began  to 

suasion  entered  into  an  intrigue  with  a  favorite  mistress  of  his  father,  was 
detected,  and,  as  some  say,  blinded  by  that  monarch.  He  then  quitted 
his  country  for  the  court  of  Peleus,  who  persuaded  Chiron  to  restore  him 
to  sight,  and  conferred  on  him  the  sovereignty  of  the  Dolopians.  In  grati- 
tude for  these  favors  he  undertook  the  tuition  of  Achilles,  and  accompa- 
nied that  hero  to  the  Trojan  war,  at  the  close  of  which  lie  returned  with 
Pyrrhus,  and  died  in  Thrace.— Y.  I.  IX.  448. 

^  ^  Hermann  here  recommends  us  to  avoid  a  strict  inquiry  into  dates, 
since,  if  Achilles  left  the  court  of  Lycomedes  for  Troy,  Neoptolemus  could 
be  only  ten  years  old. 

2  Livy  has  a  siniilar  passage,  B.  XXI.  c.  4  :  '-Missus  Annibal  in  Hi.<;- 
paniam  primo  statim  advent u  omncm  c.xercitum  in  sc  convertit.  Amil- 
parcm  viventein  redditum  sibi  vetcrcs  milites  credere,  cundem  vigorcm  in 
vultu,vimque  in  oculis,  habitum  oris,  lineamentaque  tueri." — Tn°  Com- 
pare Ilerodian,  I.  10. — B. 

^  In  unison  with  this,  Ovid  makes  l.'iysses  thus  express  himself: 

Me  miseruin  I   quanto  cogor  meminisse  dolore 
Tempori-s  iilius,  quo  Graium  nuirus  Achilles 
Procubuit  I  nee  me  lachryma)  luctusve  tjmorve 


37-1—405.]  PHILOCTETES.  299 

assail  them  Vv'ltii  every  word  of  reproach,  framing  no  ban  im- 
perfect, if  he  were  to  bereave  me  of  my  arms.  But  he  thus 
situated,  even  though  he  is  not  choleric,  wounded  at  what  he 
heard  from  me,  thus  replied :  "Thou  wert  not  where  we  were, 
but  absent  where  thou  ou^htest  not  to  have  been.  And  these 
also,  since  thou  speakest  also  thus  bold  in  tongue,  think  not 
thou  slialt  ever  sail  hence  to  Scyros  possessing."  Having  heard 
and  been  reviled  with  such  taunts  as  these,  I  am  sailing  home- 
ward, spoiled  of  mine  ovrn,  by  that  vilest  of  a  vile  race,  Ulys- 
ses. And  I  blame  not  him  so  much  as  those  in  power.  For 
a  city  is  all  its  leaders',  and  so  is  a  whole  combined  host ;  but 
they  among  mankind  that  are  dishonorable,  become  iniquitous 
by  the  precepts  of  their  teachers.  My  tale  has  all  been  told ; 
and  may  he  that  abhors  the  Atridoe  be  as  much  beloved  by  the 
gods  as  he  is  by  me. 

Cii.  O  mountain  Earth,  nurse  of  all,  mother  of  Jove  him- 
self, who  liauntest  the  ample  Pactolus  rich  in  gold,  even  there, 
O  venerable  parent,  I  prayed  to  thee,  when  on  Xeoptolemus 
the  consummate  insolence  of  Atreus'  sons  was  venting  itself, 
Vvdien  they  gave  from  him  his  fother's  arms,  thou  blessed  god- 
dess,^ on  jjull-rending  lions  seated,  as  a  mark  of  supreme  re- 
spect to  the  son  of  Laertes. 

Ph.  Ye  have  sailed  hither,  strangers,  possessed,  it  seems, 
of  a  token^  plain  enough  to  me,  and  ye  agree  with  me  [in 
your  complaints]  so  as  for  me  to  recognize  these  for  the 
doings  of  the  Atrida3  and  Ulysses.     For  I  am  c|uite  sure  that 

Tardarunt,  quin  corpus  humo  sublime  referrem ; 

His  humeris,  his,  inquam,  hunieris  ego  corpus  Achillis 

Et  simul  arma  tu!i. 

Metam.  L.  XIII.  v.  280. 

^  The  Chorus  appealed  to  Rhea  on  that  occasion  as  chief  deity  of  the 
country  in  which  they  then  were,  for  that  goddess  Vv-as  generally  by  the 
ancients  considered  the  same  with  Cybele,  and  worshiped  chiefly  in  Lyd- 
ia  (of  which  Pactolus  is  the  principal  stream)  and  Phr\'gia.  She  is  us- 
ually represented  as  riding  on  a  car  drawn  by  the  lions  into  which  she 
had  changed  Hippomenes  and  Atalanta  ;  but  Barby  suggests  that  the 
present  substitution  of  bulls  may  designate  the  change  from  savage  tft 
civilized  life. 

^  On  the  cvfij3o/LOV,  or  sicrnet  of  introduction  given  by  persons  to  their 
friends  on  setting  out  on  a  journey,  see  Musgrave,  who  refers  to  Aristid. 
t.  i.  p.  41 G,  laavov  tan  '^pog  avrhv,  uarrep  d'/./.o  tc  ci\u;3o/.ov,  avru  tu  cxv- 
(la  T.vf  drvxtac.  Mutual  misfortune  was  the  cvfijSoAov  between  Philocte- 
tes  and  Neoptoicmus. — 13. 


300  PHILOCTETES.  [40G— 447. 

he  would  attempt  with  his  tongue  cveiy  evil  word  and  villainy, 
by  v/liich  he  purposes  in  the  end  to  work  nothing  honest. 
l>ut  this  to  me  at  least  is  not  at  all  a  wonder,  but  it  were 
so  if  Ajax  the  greater  were  there  to  witness  all  this,  and  en- 
dured it. 

Ne.  He  was  no  longer  alive,  my  friend;  for  never  while  ho 
lived  at  least  had  I  thus  been  plundered. 

Fii.  How  sayest  thou  ?     And  is  he  too  dead  and  gone  ? 
i     Ne.  Be  aware  that  he  is  no  lonirer  in  life. 

Ph.  Ah  me  unhappy!  But  not  the  son  of  Tydeus,^  nor  the 
bargain  of  Sisyphus'^  to  Laertes,  they  surely  can  not  be  dead? 
For  they  should  not  live. 

Ne.  No  indeed.  Be  sure  of  that  at  least.  No,  they  are 
flourishing  finely  at  present  in  the  Greek  host. 

Pii.  But  what  of  him  who  is  aged  and  yet  stout,  the  friend 
of  Philoctetes,  Nestor  the  Pylian,  is  he  yet  ahve?  For  he 
surely  had  checked  their  crimes,  taking  wise  counsel. 

Ne.  He  indeed  is  now  faring  badly,  since  Antilochus,  the 
only  child  he  had,^  is  dead  and  lost  to  him. 

Ph.  Ah  me !  tidings  equally  dire  hast  thou  brought  me  of 
those  two  whose  death  I  had  least  been  Avilling  to  hear. 
Alas !  alas !  to  what  then  must  one  look,  when  they  are  dead, 
and  Ulysses  yet  remains  even  there,  where  in  their  room  he 
ought  to  be  spoken  of  as  dead  ? 

Ne.  An  artful  combatant  is  he  ;  but  even  artful  designs,  O 
Philoctetes,  are  often  thwarted. 

Pii.  Come,  by  the  gods  I  ask,  tell  me  where  in  that  season 
was  thy  friend  Patroclus,  v/ho  was  thy  father's  best-be- 
loved ? 

Ne.  Pie  too  had  fallen.  But  in  a  few  words  I  will  instruct 
thee  in  this.  War  purposely  carries  off  no  Avicked  man,  but 
ever  the  virtuous. 

*  We  do  not  find  hitherto  any  mention  of  Diomed  as  having  incurred 
the  wrath  of  Philoctetes,  but  his  known  intimacy  with  Ulysses,  and  in- 
famous conduct  to  Dolon,  afford  strong  suspicions  of  his  having  joined 
•in  the  wrong  done  to  the  son  of  Poias. 

"  Anticlea,  wife  of  Sisyphus,  was  pregnant  when  she  married  Laertes. 
See  Ovid.  Met.  xiii.  31,  sqq.  and  Hermann. — B. 

^  Nestor  had  seven  sons,  two  of  w'hom  accompanied  him  to  the  Trojan 
war.  The  epithet  fiovog,  here  applied  to  Antilochus,  is  usually  supposed 
to  mean  the  survivor  of  these  two.  Antilochus  was  slain  by  Mcmnou 
the  Ethiopian. 


448—453.]  PHILOCTETES.  301 

Ph.  I  bear  thee  witness ;  and  by  this  very  same  rule  I  will 
now  question  thee  of  a  worthless  being,  yet  shrewd  of  tongue 
and  cunning,  Vv'hat  is  his  condition  now. 

Ne.  Of  what  man  dost  thou  ask  this,  save  Ulysses  ? 

Pii.  I  spake  not  of  him  ;  but  there  was  one  Thersites,^  who 
never  would  choose  but  once  to  speak  what  none  could  bear 
to  hear  ;  knowest  thou  if  he  chance  to  live  ? 

Ne.  I  saw  him  not,  but  heard  he  was  yet  in  being.^ 

Fii.  He  was  likely ;  since  never  yet  did  aught  of  evil 
perish,  but  of  such  things^  the  gods  take  especial  care ;  and 
somehow  the  treacherous  and  the  wily  they  delight  in  res- 
piting from  Plades,^  but  the  just  and  the  upright  they  are 
ever  dismissing.  Where  must  we  place  this  to  account,  where- 
in approve,  when,  lauding  the  acts  of  the  gods,  I  find  the  gods 
unjust'? 

Ne.  I,  O  son  of  an  GtCtcean^  father,  now  henceforth  from 

'  Thersites  only  clamor'd  in  the  throng, 

Loquacious,  loud,  and  turbulent  of  tongue  : 
Awed  by  no  shame,  by  no  respect  controll'd, 
In  scandal  busy,  in  reproaches  bold, 
With  witty  malice  studious  to  defame  ; 
Scorn  all  his  joy,  and  laughter  all  his  aim. 

Pope's  II.  II.  255.— Tk. 

There  is  some  awkwardness  in  the  expression  og  ovk  uv  etXer'  eiauTza^ 
sliT£lv  oTiOV  Mrjdeig  lu>j],  which  the  scholiast  interprets  d  ovk  7/6e?i£v  Tig 
urra^  unovaaL,  ravra  7roX?MKt^  t?.£yev.  We  must  render  eiadTza^  ei-slv, 
"to  say,  and  have  done  with  it,"  like  the  Latin  use  of  "  semel"  =  "once 
for  all.'"  So^ii^sch.  Prom.  750,  Kpslaaov  yup  elauTra^  Qavelv.  See  Herra. 
on  CEJ.  Col.  1420.     After  k6r]  understand  elrcelv. — B. 

^  All  other  authors  say  that  he  fell  by  the  hand  of  Achilles.  The  scho- 
liast attributes  his  death  to  his  having  struck  out  Penthesilea's  eye  after 
that  princess  had  fallen  by  the  hand  of  Achilles.  "  Prudenter  Sophocles 
ea  dicentem  fecit  Neoptolemum,  qua3  et  a  patre  ejus  ignobile  facinus  de- 
clinarent,  et  egregie  declararent  obscuritatem  Thersitae." — Herm. 

^  Observe  the  enallage,  avTu  after  ovStv  kukov.  See  Jelf  Gk.  Gr.  vol. 
ii.  *J  330,  L— B. 

*  Not  unreasonably  then  in  Philoctetes'  opinion  might  Nestor,  as  in 
Shakespeare  he  does,  say  of  Hector, 

"  Lo  !  Jupiter  is  yonder,  dealing  life." 

Since  to  this  very  Thersites,  after  he  has  given  an  account  of  himself  per- 
fectly accordant  with  what  is  said  of  him  here,  the  Trojan  warrior  replies, 
"  I  do  believe  thee  ;  live."     There  is,  however,  an  allusion  to  Sisyphus. 

*  CEta,  whereon  Hercules  burned  himself,  is  a  mountainous  range  on 
the  confines  of  Thessaly  and  Macedonia,  extending  from  Pindus  to  Ther- 
mopylae and  the  Malian  territory,  over  which  Poias  reigned. 


302  PKILOCTETES.  [451—494. 

afar  looking  on  both  Ilium  and  the  Atridag  will  bevv^are  of 
them,  and  where  the  worse  is  of  greater  power  than  the  good, 
and  all  that  is  good  is  on  the  wane,  and  the  coward  prevails, 
these  men  never  will  I  hold  dear.  No,  the  rocky  Scjros' 
hereafter  shall  content  me  to  pleasure  myself  at  home.  And 
now  will  I  go  to  my  vessel,  and  do  thou,  son  of  Poias,  fare- 
well, most  well,  and  m.ay  the  gods  emancipate  thee  from  thy 
disease,  as  thyself  wishest.  But  let  us  be  gone,  that  when- 
soever the  god  shall  grant  us  sailing,  even  then  we  may  weigh 
anchor. 

Ph.  Are  ye  now  bound  to  sail,  ray  son  ? 

Ne.  Yes,  for  occasion  invites  us  to  watch  a  time  not  to  sail 
out  of  sisht  of  the  ship  rather  than  near  it. 

Ph.  jSTow  by  thy  father  and  thy  mother,  my  son,  and  by 
aught  that  is  dear  to  thee,  if  aught  there  be,  at  home,  I  a 
suppliant  implore  thee,  leave  me  not  thus  forlorn  and  lonely 
in  these  afflictions,  such  as  thou  seest,  and  as  many  as  thou 
hast  heard  I  live  in  ;  but  take  me  into  the  barirain.^  The 
annoyance,  I  well  know,  of  this  freightage  will  be  great,  yet 
still  put  up  with  it.  To  the  generous,  mark  me,  both  base- 
ness is  hateful,  and  virtue  glorious.  But  to  thee,  having 
left  this  undone,  the  reproach  is  not  creditable,  and  hav- 
ing performed  it,  my  son,  the  noblest  meed  of  fair  renown, 
should  I  live  to  reach  the  CEta?an  land.  Come.  The  trouble, 
look  you,  is  not  that  of  one  Avhoie  day.  Determine  on  it ; 
take  and  cast  me  in  whither  thou  wilt,  into  the  hold,  the 
prow,  the  stern,  wherever  I  am  least  likely  to  olfcnd  thy 
mates.  Assent,  by  Jove  of  suppliants  himself,  my  son  be 
persuaded.  I  fall  at  thy  knees  before  thee,  though  I  Vv'retched 
am  infirm  and  lame.  Nay,  leave  me  not  thus  deserted,  far 
from  any  trace  of  man  ;  but  either  take  and  carry  me  sale  to 
thine  home,  or  to  the  abodes  of  Chalcodon  in  Euboca  ;^  and 
tlience  my  voyage  will  not  be  a  long  one  to  Qi)ta,  and  the 
rocky  ridge  of  Trachis,  and  the  fair-iiowing  Spercheius,  that 
thou  maye^t  present  me  to  my  dear  father,  of  whom  it  is  long 
that  I  have  feared  lest  he  be  gone  from  me ;  since  often  did 

^  '^.pXV  ^i^'^'pla  became  a  Greek  |)roverl),  farnisliiiig  much  tlie  same 
idea  as  a  German  tluchy  or  principality  doed  to  us. 

^  See  Brunck's  note. — T r.  i.  c,  '•  do  your  best  for  me,  without  trouble 
to  yourself."     Cf  Liddell,  s.  v.— B. 

'■'  Ta  GTudfia  are  properly  the  aueliorap;e  for  .siiip.«i.  Chalcodon  was  an 
ancient  king  cf  Eubcea,  father  of  Elephenor.     V.  II.  IV.  v.  464. 


4:;o— 5£7.]  PHILOCTETi:S.  303 

I  son  J  for  Lim  by  those  who  came  hitlic-r,  conveying  to  him 
suppliant  entreaties  that  he  would  liiniselt*  embarking  rescue 
nic  and  carry  me  hence  to  my  homo.  But  either  he  is  dead, 
or,  I  suppose,  my  emissaries,  as  is  hiieiy,  making  my  case  of 
shght  account,  hurried  their  voyage  homeward.  x>ow,  how- 
ever, since  I  am  com.e  to  thee  as  at  once  my  convoy  and  my 
messenger,  do  thou  save  me,  do  thou  pity  me,  beholding  liow 
everv  thing  is  doomed  to  man  in  trouble  and  in  hazard,  to  re- 
ceive  blessings,  or  the  contrary.^  But  it  becomes  one,  while 
exempt  from  woes,  to  look  to  the  dangers,  and  when  any  one 
shall  live  prosperously,  at  that  time  most  narrowly  to  watch 
his  life,  lest  he  be  unvv-arilv  brouglit  to  destruction. 

Cii.  Pity  him,  O  king :"-  he  hath  recounted  the  struggles  of 
many  a  trouble  hard  to  bear,  so  many  as  m.ay  no  friend  of 
mine  ever  happen  on.  But  if,  O  king,  thou  hatest  the  bitter 
Atridce,  I  for  my  part,  transposing  their  evil  to  advantage  for 
this  man,  would  convey  him  thither  v/hither  he  has  mentioned, 
to  his  home,  on  beard  my  well-efjuipped,  sv/ift  bark,  avciding 
the  vengeful  AATath  from  heaven. 

!Xe.  Beware  thou,  lest  now  thou  be  here  a  sort  of  easy  per- 
son, but  when  thou  hast  been  sated  v/itli  the  company  of  his 
disease,  then  thou  show  thyself  no  longer  the  same  as  in  these 
words.  ^ 

Cii.  By  no  means.  This  reproach  it  can  not  be  that  thou 
wilt  ever  have  in  justice  to  rebuke  me  withal. 

I>E.  Nav,  but  it  were  base  that  I  should  shovv'  mvself  less 
ready  than  thou  art  in  taking  seasonable  trouble  for  the  stran- 
ger. But  if  it  seems  fit,  let  us  sail,  let  him  hasten  with  speed ; 
for  the  ship  shall  carry  him,  and  he  shall  not  be  refused.     Only 

1  Thus  liorace,  L.  II   Od.  10  : 

Sperat  infestis,  metuit  secundis 
Alteram  sorteni  bene  praBparatum 
Pectus. 
-  The  commentators  question  hero  v/hecher  the  Chorus  are  acquainted 
with  the  plans  of  Ulysses  and  dissimulation  of  Pyrrhus  or  not.     Barby 
considers  them  ignorant  of  it  ail,  and  that  the  pity  they  wish  to  prove  by 
deeds  is  unfeigned  ;  w  hich,  though  it  accords  well  with  Horace's  rule  for 
the  n'.anagcment  of  the  tragic  Chorus,  is  not  so  reconcilable  with  the  in- 
structions previously  given  on  the  stage  to  Neoptoiemus  by  Ulysses,  un- 
less we  PUT'Oose  the  ancients  to  have  had  recourse  to  that  disirrace  of 
most  modern  plays,  the  '•  aside." 

^  7.  c.y  0  cvTug  Tu  TC'jra  /.cyui'Ti.  Cf  GUd.  R.  557,  kcl  vvv  10'  uvro^ 
tluL  tCj  jSuv/.evjLLan. — B. 


304  PHILOCTETES.  [528—553. 

may  the  gods  take  us  safe  from  this  land  at  least,  and  to  what- 
soever place  we  wish  to  sail  from  hence. 

Pii.  O  day  most  beloved,  O  man  most  pleasing,  and  ye, 
dear  sailors,  how  might  I  become  manifest  to  you  by  deeds, 
how  much  attached  to  you  ye  have  made  me !  Let  us  be 
gone,  my  son,  having  bidden  forewell  with  a  kiss  to  my  house- 
less abode  within,  that  ye  may  learn  of  me  on  what  I  con- 
tinued to  live,  and  how  stout  of  heart  I  was  by  nature,  for  I 
think  that  none  else  save  me,  having  taken  but  a  mere  sight 
of  them  Avith  his  eyes,  had  endured  all  this  ;  but  I  of  necessity 
was  foretau2;ht  to  be  resisniied  to  miseries.^ 

Cii.  Hold,  let  us  learn  the  matter ;  for  two  men,  the  one  I 
a  mariner  in  thy  vessel,  the   other  a  foreigner,  are  coming, 
of  whom   having  learned    [their   purpose]   go   ye    afterward 
within. 

]\Ierciiant.  Son  of  Achilles,  this,  the  comrade  of  thy 
voyage,  who  was  with  two  others  the  guardian  of  thy  ship,  I 
desired  to  tell  me  w'here  thou  mightest  chance  to  be,  since  I 
have  fallen  upon  thee,  not  indeed  supposing  I  should,  but  in 
a  manner  by  chance  having  put  into  this  land.  For  being 
bound,  as  master  of  a  vessel,  with  no  large  equipment,  from 
Troy  homeward  to  Peparethus'^  rich  in  the  clustering  grape, 
when  I  heard  from  the  sailors  that  they  were  all  the  crews  of 
thy  vessels,^  it  seemed  fit  to  me  not  silently  to  perform  my 
voyage,  until  I  had  made  a  disclosure  to  thee,  having  met  with 
a  fair  requital.^     Perhaps  thou  knowest  nought  of  what  con- 

^  'Aya~av  is  used  in  the  same  sense. — Tr.  Cf.  Blomf.  on^Esch.  Prom. 
II.  and  note  on  CEd.  Tyr.  11.— B. 

^  Peparethus  is  a  small  island  in  the  ^^gean  Sea,  off  the  coast  of  Mace- 
donia, once  celebrated  for  its  vines  and  olives. — Tr.  There  is  mucli  ditfi- 
culty  and  disturbance  in  the  state  of  the  following  lines,  which  at  present 
are  far  from  satisfactory.  In  the  edition  by  Mr.  G.  Burges,  a  most  in- 
genious and  probable  transposition  of  them  is  proposed,  involving  but  lit- 
tle verbal  alteration.  See  his  notes  on  vss.  549-55G,  i)agc  45  of  ^'a!py■s 
edition. — B. 

^  Dobree  reads  cvvvcvavGro'AijKore^,  Avhich  "Wundcr  (who  has  since 
changed  his  mind)  and  Burges  (who  has  not)  adopted.  The  article  is 
ridiculously  out  of  place,  as  it  ca)i  only  mean,  '•  tl-ey  formed  the  whole  of 
your  crcv^'',"  which  is  not  the  information  v.anted.  The  stress  ought  to 
be  on  TrdvTtg,  and  retaining  Dobrce's  reading,  the  sense  will  be,  "that 
they  all  belonged  to  your  crevv',"'  or,  ''that  tlicy  all  were  fellow-sailors 
v/ith  you." — B. 

*  Commentators  arc  m;:cli  divided  on  tliis  'lassa^e.     Brunck  condcrnns 


554—572.]  PHILOCTETES.  .'iOo 

cerns  thyself,  what  are  the  new  resolves  of  the  Greeks  touch- 
ing thj  concerns,^  nor  merely  resolves,  but  deeds  now  doing, 
and  no  longer  loitered  in. 

Ne.  Nay,  a  kindly  gratitude^  for  thy  friendly  care,  O  stran- 
ger, unless  I  have  been  born  a  villain,  shall  remain ;  but  do 
thou  expound  all  that  thou  hast  mentioned,  that  I  may  learn 
what  new  plot  of  the  Greeks  against  me  thou  bearest. 

Mi:r.  Both  the  aged  Phoenix  and  Theseus'  sons-^  are  gone 
in  pursuit  of  thee  v.-ith  a  naval  squadron. 

Ne.  With  intent  to  carry  me  back  by  force  or  by  persuav 
sion '? 

Mer.  I  know  not,  but  having  heard  am  here  to  tell  thee. 

Ne.  What,  do  then  Phoenix  and  the  partners  of  his  voyage 
do  this  thus  hastily  to  pleasure  the  Atridaa? 

Mee.  Be  sure  that  all  this  is  now  doinix,  and  no  longer  to 
come. 

Ne.  Plow  then  was  not  Ulysses  voluntarily  ready  to  sail  for 
this  purpose  ?  was  it  any  fear  that  withlield  him  ? 

Mer.  He  and  Tydeus'  son  were  setting  out  after  another 
w^arrior,  when  I  weighed  anchor. 

Ne.  Who  might  this  be,  for  whom  Ulysses  himself  was  sail- 
ing? 

the  scholiast  for  referring  TrpoarvxovTL  to  /uoi,  and  alters  it  to  Trpoarvx^Jv 
Ti.  Heath  would  read  Tzpoarvx^'^  '^'■i  '^'^^  laug  ....  that  is,  qu(zdam 
qu(B  mihi  nota  esse  contigerunt,  quorum  tu  forsan  nihil  nosti.  Musgrave 
corrects  it,  TrpoaTvxovTc,  luv  Icug  .  .  .  visum  est  mihi,  quuvi  semel  in- 
cidisscm,  non  silcntio  prius  abire,  quam  tihi  dicer  em,  de  quibus  tu  nihil  for- 
tasse  nosti.  There  does  not,  however,  seem  to  be  any  good  reason  why 
TrpoGTvxovTi  should  not  be  referred  to  /uoi,  though  not  in  the  sense  in 
which  the  schoUast  understands  it. — Tr.  :  "  praemio  afFectus  propter  ea 
quEB  nuntiassem." — Wunder. 

^  aju(pl  GovvEKa  is  defended  by  Hermann  as  a  similar  phrase  to  rivog  6rj 
Xu-pLv  evEna  in  Plato,  or  diru  (Soi'jg  ivcKev,  ufi(pl  gov  being  construed  as  a 
noun,  which  the  pecuUar  construction  of  djucpi.  certainly  countenances. 

-  Buttmann  remarks  that  x^P'-^  TcpoGcpihjg  is  a  pleonasm,  as  x^P'-^  itself 
denotes  friendlv  gratitude.  Cf.  Horn.  II.  iv.  95  ;  xvii.  147  ;  below,  1370. 
— B. 

^  These  v^^ere  Acamas  and  Demophoon,  worthy  of  their  father,  since 
the  last  is  celebrated  for  his  desertion  of  Phyllis,  and  the  former  going 
with  Diomed  to  demand  Helen  of  the  Trojans,  seduced  Laodice,  the 
daughter  of  Priam.  This  prince  is  said  to  have  founded  the  city  of  Aca- 
mantium  in  Phrygia,  and  on  his  return  to  Athens  gave  his  name  to  one 
of  its  tribes. 


30G  PHILOCTETES.  [573—604. 

IVIer.  There  "vvas  indeed  a  man — But  first  teil  me  of  this 
man  here,  wlio  he  is ;  and  what  thou  sayest,  speak  not  aloud. 

Ne.  This  before  you  is  the  illustrious  Philoctetes,  stranger. 

IVIer.  Now  ask  me  no  more,  but  with  all  speed  sail  hence, 
and  away  with  thyself  from  this  land. 

Pii.  "\\^hat  says  he,  my  son  ?  AVhat  can  be  the  reason  that 
thus  darkly  the  mariner  traffics  in  me  his  words  to  thee  ? 

Ne.  As  yet  I  know  not  what  he  says,  but  it  needs  he  speak 
openly  what  he  will  speak,  to  thee,  and  me,  and  these  here 

Mek.  O  offspring  of  Achilles,  impeach  me  not  to  the  army, 
as  disclosing  what  I  ought  not.  I,  doing  them  many  a  service, 
receive  of  them  a  fair  requital,  such  as  a  poor  man  may. 

Ne.  I  am  a  foe  to  the  Atridce,^  and  this  is  my  dearest  friend, 
for  that  he  detests  the  Atrida; :  it  is  then  thy  duty,  at  least  as 
coming  well-affected  toward  me,  to  conceal  not  a  vrord  of  all 
thou  lia^st  heard  before  us. 

Mek.  Look  to  what  thou  docst,  my  son. 

Ne.  And  lone;  since  I  do  consider. 

Mer.  I  will  lay  the  blame  of  this  on  thee. 

Ne.  Do  so,  but  speak. 

Mer.  I  do.  Against  this  man,  these  two,  even  as  thou 
hearest,  Tydeus'  son  and  the  puissant  Ulysses,^  are  sailing, 
under  a  solemn  oath  that  positively  they  will  either  by  words 
persuade  and  bring  him  back,  or  by  the  power  of  force.  And 
this  all  the  Greeks  heard  Ulysses  openly  declaring ;  for  he 
had  more  confidence  than  the  other  that  he  should  effect  all 
this. 

Ne.  But  on  what  account  are  the  Atrida?  after  so  long  a 
time  so  very  anxious  for  this  man,  Avliom  they  novv'  for  a  long 
season  have  driven  and  kept  away?  ^Vhat  is  the  want  that 
has  invaded  them,  or  what  force  and  indignation  from  heaven, 
that  aveno-cs  wicked  deeds  ? 

Mer.  I  Avill  inform  thee  of  all  this  throughout,  for  haply 
thou  hast  not  heard  it.     There  was  a  hi^h-born  seer,  the  son 

^  See  Brunck's  note  on  tlic  metre  here,  and  also  GUd.  Tvr.  332,  CEJ. 
Col.  931),  Ant.  458. 

"  To  make  his  tale  more  plausible,  the  pretended  merchant  joins  Dio- 
mcd  with  Ulysses  in  this  enterprise,  as  they  were  both  eminent  in  infamy, 
both  protected  by  Minerva,  and  usually  partners  to  execute  any  scheme 
of  treachery,  such  as  the  murder  of  Dolon  or  of  Rhesus,  or  the  theft  of 
*he  Palladium. 


G05— G34.]  PKILOCTETES.  307 

cf  Priam,  and  he  was  called  by  name  Heleniis,'  whom  he,  the 
crafty  Ulysses,  that  hears  of  himself  every  base  and  insulting- 
term,  having  gone  out  alone  by  night,  took  prisoner,  and 
bringing  him  bonnd  into  the  midst  of  tlie  Greeks,  displayed 
him,  a,  noble  bcotv ;  v.ho  thereiinon  foretold  to  them  both 
every  other  point,  and  that  it  could  not  be  that  they  should 
ever  take  the  citadel  of  Troy,  unless  they  brought,  having  per- 
suaded him  by  their  Avords,  this  warrior  here  from  this  island 
whereon  he  is  at  present  dwelling.  And  when  the  offspring 
of  Laertes  heard  the  prophet  uttering  these  words,  he  instant- 
ly undertook  to  bring  and  present  to  the  Greeks  this  man ;  he 
must  suppose,  having  taken  him  in  preference  with  his  con- 
sent ;  but  if  he  would  not,  against  it ;  and  not  succeeding  in 
this,  he  bid  any  one  that  Vv'ould  to  cut  oiT  his  head.  My  son, 
thou  hast  heard  all ;  but  to  be  quick  I  exhort  both  thee  thy- 
self, and  if  thou  hast  a  care  for  any  other. 

Pn.  Ah  me  unhappy !  Has  he  then,  that  utter  pest,  sworn 
that  he  v/iil  persuade  and  convey  me  to  the  Greeks  ?  For  as 
well  shall  I  be  persuaded  when  dead  to  rise  even  from  Hades 
to  light,  as  did  his  father." 

Mer.  Of  this  I  know  nothing  ;  but  I  will  go  to  my  vessel, 
and  may  heaven  aid  you  both  as  best  it  may. 

Ph.  And  is  not  this  shameful,  my  son,  that  Laertes'  son 
should  ever  hope  by  soothing  Vv'ords  to  carry  me  on  board  ship 
and  show  me  in  the  midst  of  the  Greeks  ?  No  ;  sooner  would 
I  listen  to  the  viper,  my  deadliest  bane,  that  made  me  thus 
lame  of  foot.^  But  by  him  can  every  thing  be  said  and  every 
thing  be  attempted  ;  and  now  I  knoAV  that  he  will  come.     But 

'  Other  authors  differ  in  their  chronology  at  this  period,  for  they  state 
that  Helenus,  on  the  marrian-e  of  Deiphobus  with  Helen,  retired  in  dis- 
gust  to  Mount  Ida,  Vvhence  Ulysses  carried  him  to  the  Greek  camp.  But 
Paris,  as  is  foretold  in  this  play  to  Phiioctetes,  was  slain  by  the  arrows 
of  Hercules. 

^  This  alludes  to  a  well-known  trick  of  Sisyphus,  who,  being  on  his 
death-bed,  charged  his  wife  Merope  to  leave  him  unburied.  She  complied, 
and  on  Sisyphus'  arrival  in  Hades  he  complained  to  Pluto  of  her  impiety, 
which  he  requested  leave  to  punish.  This  was  granted,  and  he  returned 
to  earth  under  promise  of  revisitincrhell  as  soon  as  he  should  have  avenged 
himself.  No  sooner  had  he  regained  life,  however,  than  he  violated  his 
oath,  for  which  he  was  afterward  punished. 

^  "•''k-ovv.  -novq  in  casu  quarto  nunquam  quidem  habet  'nOvv,  at  in 
compositis  habet,  ut  ttoauttovv  et  TroAvTrodc.'" — Barby. 


I 


308  PHILOCTETES.  [G35— 057. 

O  my  soil,  let  us  go,  that  a,  Avidc  sea  may  part  us^  from  Ulys- 
ses' vessel.  Let  us  be  gone  ;  timely  exertion,  look  you,  when 
the  labor  is  at  an  end,  is  wont  to  bring  sleep  and  repose. 

Ne.  Well,  then,  when  the  wind  in  our  bow  shall  subside, 
then  will  we  sail,  for  now  it  sets  against  us. 

Pii.  The  season  to  sail  is  ever  fair  when  thou  art  flying 
from  calamity. 

Ne.  Nay,  but  these  same  winds  arc  averse  to  them. 

Pii.  There  is  no  wind  contrary  to  pirates,  when  it  is  possi- 
ble to  thieve  and  rob  by  force. 

Ne.  Nay,  if  thou  think  fit,  let  us  be  gone,  when  thou  hast 
taken  from  within  whatsoever  thou  most  feelest  need  of  or  de- 
sire for. 

Pii.  Yes,  there  is  whereof  I  have  need,-  though  from  no 
ample  store. 

Ne.  Wliat  is  it,  which  at  least  is  not  on  board  my  ship? 

Pii.  I  have  by  me  a  certain  plant,  wherewith  chiefly  I  am 
continually  deadening  my  sore,  so  as  thoroughly  to  assuage  it. 

Ne.  But  bring  it  out.  And  what  else  art  thou  desirous  to 
take  ? 

Pii.  If  any  one  of  these  my  arrows  hath  fallen  beside  me 
unheeded,  that  I  may  not  leave  it  for  any  one  to  take. 

Ne.  What,  are  these  the  celebrated  bow  and  arrows,  that 
thou  art  now  holding? 

Pii.  They  are,  for  there  are  at  least  none  else  that  I  carry 
in  my  hands. 

Ne.  Is  it  possible  for  me  to  take  a  close  view  of  them  also? 
and  to  hold  them,  and  salute  them  with  a  kiss^  as  divine? 

^  We  must  read  bpl'Cy  with  Wunder  and  Burges,  from  Brunck's  emen- 
dation.— B. 

^  "  AeZ — U7Z0.  Tmesis  est  pro  uTvoSel.  Sunt,  quibus  cgcam,  ncc  viultis 
tameyi."" — Barby- — Tr.     See  Hermann. — B. 

^  Upoaicvcac  has  not  ahvays  the  same  sijinification  :  vid.  v.  776,  where 
it  means  to  mitigate  by  worship  the  anger  of  the  gods,  and  to  which  there 
is  a  parallel  expression  in  the  last  verse  of  the  second  Psalm.  A  kiss  has 
in  all  ages,  however,  been  considered  as  a  mark  of  respect.  Hence  Cicero  : 
Ibi  est  ex  arc  simulacrum  ipsius  Hcrculis,  quo  non  facile  qiiiilquam  dixc- 
rim  me  vidisse  pulchrius — usque  eo,  judiccs,  vt  rictum  ejus  ac  mcntum 
paulo  sit  attritius,  quod  in  prccibus  ct  gratulationibus  non  solum  id  vcne 
rari,  vcrum  etiam  osculari  solcnt.  Cic.  in  Ver.  L.  IV.  33.  Such  is  the 
account  given  by  travelers  of  the  Kaaba  or  sacred  stone  at  Mecca  also. 
Vid.  Virg.  JEn.  11.  490.     Tibull.  El.  I.  44.     Ovid.  Trist.  L.  I.  44. 


053— G33.]  PHILOCTETES.  309 

Ph.  To  thee  at  least,  my  son,  both  this  and  aught  else  of 
mine,  tliat  may  advantage  thee,  shall  be  done. 

Ke.  Indeed  I  long  to  do  it,  and  thus  I  feel  my  longing :  if 
it  be  allowable  for  me,  I  should  wish  it,  but  if  not,  let  it 
alone. 

Pii.  My  son,  thou  both  speakcst  piously,  and  it  is  allowable 
for  thee  at  least,  who  alone  hast  iriven  me  to  behold  this  lioht 
of  tlie  sun,  to  look  on  the  land  of  QCta,  on  my  aged  father,  on 
my  friends,  who  hast  raised  me  far  above  mine  enemies  when 
sunk  below  them.  Courage;  it  is  given  thee  both  to  touch 
these  arrows,  and  to  return  them  to  the  giver ;  and  that  thou 
shouldest  hereafter  make  it  thy  boast  that  thou  alone  of  man- 
kind in  guerdon  of  thy  virtue  hast  handled  them,  seeing  that 
it  was  by  a  kind  action  I  myself  acquired  them,^  displeased  me 
not,  not  that  I  have  seen  and  gained  thee  for  my  friend :  for 
whoever  knows  liov/  to  return  a  kindness  he  has  received  must 
1)2  a  friend  above  all  price. 

Ne.   Thou  shouldst  go  within. 

Pii.  Av,  and  I  will  brin;^  tlicc  i:i  too,  fcr  my  disease  lon<r3 
to  possess  thee  as  my  supporting  aid. 

Cii.  I  have  heard  fully  in  story,  yet  truly  I  never  witnessed, 
hov/  that  the  all-powerful  son  of  Saturn  caught  Ixion,^  once 
the  invader  of  the  couch  of  Jove,  and  thereupon  chained  him 
to  a  whirling  wheel  ;'^  but  of  no  other  do  I  know  by  hearsay, 
nor  have  I  seen  among  mankind,  doomed  to  a  lot  more  hate- 
ful than  this  man's,  who  having  injured  no  one  by  force  or 
fraud, ^  but  among  the  just  a  just  man,  hath  been  ruined  thus 
undeservedly.  This  wonder  possesses  me,  how  ever,  how  ever, 
lie  lonely  listening  to  the  breakers  dashing  around,  how  in 

'  Philoctetes  had  received  the  r.irovis  in  reward  for  his  services  to  licr- 
cu!cs,  and  particularly  the  kindiin^  cf  hio  funeral  pile  on  Gi]ta.  Hermanu 
supposes  a  line  to  be  omitted  in  the  Creek  tc;;t  here,  and  reads  louv  i:c2 
/.aSiJi-,  construing  ce  v,ith  axOo/iat.  If  a  colon  he  placed  after  docrai,  the 
passage  seems  capable  of  the  version  given  above  v^ithout  a  hiatus. — Tn. 
See  B urges'  note,  where  he  has  ingeniously  elicited  a  Ihic  from  the  Scho- 
Uast,  which,  could  we  be  more  certain,  v.'ould  restore  good  sense. — B. 

^  Ision's  story  is  too  v.ell  known  to  need  repetition.  Hermann  reads 
E^aAev,  construing  6pofiu6a  with  'l^tova. 

^  The  word  ulihv^,  v^hich  is  supported  by  the  authority  of  Eustathius 
(vid.  Brunch's  note),  meant  originally  the  hllct  used  by  women  to  tie  up 
their  hair,  vid.  Horn.  II.  XXII.  v.  4G9,  and  after  that  came  from  its  round 
form  to  signify  a  wheel.     Musgrave,  hov.cvcr,  suggests  t2; n; a. 

*  tp^ag,  so.  Ti. — Herm. 


310  PHILOCTETES.  [690— 71G. 

truth   he  could  have  Ffupportcd  an  existence   so   thoroughly    i 
pitiable :  where  he'  was  liis  only  neighbor,  having  no  power 
to  walk,  nor  any  neighbor  of  his  ilis,  dwelling  in  the  place, 

to  Avhom  he  might  v/ail  forth  his  echoed  groan,-  his 

paiaifully  gnawing,  blood-stained  ;  nor  any  wlio  might  with 
gentle  herbs  assuage  liis  most  fevered  blood  bubbling  from 
the  v.ounds  of  his^  empoisoned  foot,  should  any  come  to  hand,*- 
and  migiit  gather  it  from  the  fostering  earth.  For  then  when 
his  8oui-gnawing  torture  might  relax,  Vv'ould  he  crawl  like  a 
babe  Avitliout  his  kind  nurse,  nov/  to  this  store  now  to  some 
other,  v»'hcnce  he  could  have  easy  relief,  not  gathering  the 
sowed  nutriment  of  holy  earth,  nor  of  other  food  wherewith  wc 
enterprising'"'  men  support  ourselves:  except  if  ever  by  the 
winged  arrows  of  his  bov/  striking  from  afar  he  might  procure 
food  for  his  stomach.  Ah  v/retched  soul !  that*^  for  ten  long 
years  he  v\as  not  gladdened  v»'ith  the  bcveraixc  cf  the  flowing 
wine-cup,  but  gazing  on   the    stagnant  v.'atcrs''    v.'hcrcvcr  he 


^  This  appccirs  better  Guitcd  to  coir.cuy  than  tragedy,  r.nJ  to  company 
viiiii  the  proximus  sum  cgomct  inihi,  or  the  often  quoted  verse,  '•  None  bat 
himself  can  be  his  parallel."  Hermann  says  rrpocovpog  in  Herodotus  sig- 
nifies neighboring ;  but  that  Ionic  form  is,  unless  I  am  totally  niistaken, 
inadmissible  in  the  tragedians.  With  them  Trpooovpog,  like  trrcvpog,  i.i 
derived  from  ovpog,  xcrdus  sccundus ;  Iv'  avrbg  ijv  Tzpocovpog  then  Vv'ill 
mean,  in  qucm  locum  ipse  quasi  sccundo  vcnto  vcncrat. — Tn.  But  since 
uTTOvpog  (CEd.  Tyr.  189)  and  ^vvovpog  (^Esch.  Ag.  49.5)  are  used,  why  not 
TTpocovpog  also  I  Dindorf  now  reads  with  Eothe,  rrpocovpov  oi'K  ix^^y 
(Sua  IV. — B. 

^  Lindemann  would  read  -rorov  trriTrovov  for  ctoiov  uvrlrvTrov.  I 
fancy,  with  HeiTnann,  that  something  has  been  lost,  perhaps  a  participle, 
or  sub.stantivc  agreeing  with  ai/uart^pcv.  Nothing  can  be  made  of  the 
text  as  it  now^  stands. — B. 

^  The  scholiast  interprets  kvOt'/pov  OrjpoSi/icrcv.  Elermann  translates  it 
with  Buttmann  cjfcraium,  as  h'Oijpov  rplxci,  Ag.  571,  alluding  to  the  foul 
appearance  cf  the  foot  clotted  with  gore. 

*  Herm.  d  rig  ijnTTcaoi,  sc.  alftdc.  The  passage  that  follows  is  altered 
to  suit  Hermann's  text. — Tu.  ^^"c  must  understand  dvrair'  uv,  or  seme 
such  phrase,  with  t/uli-. — B. 

^  This  epithet  is  particularly  applied  to  seamen  and  traders.  Cf  Ho- 
mer Od.  XIIL  261  ;  Hymn,  in  ApoU.  453.— B. 

«  ^vxa,  Of.  Sec  Buttm.  and  J  elf,  Gk.  Gr.  T.  H.  <J  379,  Obs.  6.  This 
exactly  corresponds  to  Homer's  tj^xtig  ....  cvrovg.     II.  I.  3,  4. — B. 

^  From  these  words  of  the  Chorus  Hermann  infers  that  the  running 
stream  mentioned  in  the  beginning  of  the  play  v.'as  not  represented  on  the 
scene,  and  that  Ulysses  from  that  very  circumstarxc  there  subjoins  ti-c^j 
Icrl  cQi'. 


I 


717_743.j  PKILOCTETES.  311 

chrjiced  to  know  it  v/as,  ever  and  anon  would  he  add  it  to  bis 
food.  Kow,  however,  he  shall  end  his  life  in  happiness,  and 
rise  to  greatness  from  those  miseries,  having  met  with  the  son 
of  brave  heroes,  who  in  bark  that  walks  the  main,  in  fullness 
of  many  months,  brings  him  to  his  paternal  abode  of  the  Me- 
lian  nymphs,  and  beside  the  banks  of  Spercheius,  where  the 
brazen-shielded  hero  enters  the  assembly  of  all  the  gods,^  all 
radiant  in  heavenly  lire,  above  the  mounds  of  Gita. 

Ke.  Crawl  out,  an  thou  v»'iit.  What  can  be  the  matter, 
that  thus  from  no  assinnablc  reason  thou  art  silent,  and  thus 
struck  dumb  are  kept  so  1 

Ph.  Oh  !  alas !  alas ! 

Ke.  What  is  it  ? 

Ph.  No  harm.     But  proceed,  my  son. 

!Ne.   Is  it  that  thou  feelest  pain  from  thy  existing  ailment? 

Ph.  xsot  I  indeed  ;  no,  I  think  I  am  just  now  lightened  of 
it.     O  ye  gods ! 

jSTe.  Why  thus  with  gi'oans  dost  thou  invoke  the  gods? 

Ph.  That  they  may  come  as  our  deliverers,  and  placable. 
Oh!   Oh!2 

Ne.  What  can  be  the  matter  Vv'ith  thee?  wilt  thou  rot  tell, 
but  continue  thus  silent?  Thou  art  clearly  involved  in  como 
affliction. 

Ph.  I  am  undone,  my  son,  and  shall  not  be  able  to  conceal 
my  misery  from  }ou.^     Alas !  it  pierces,  pierces  me  through. 

■•  This  alludes  to  the  apotheosis  of  Hercules.  Hermann  considers  the 
epithet  merely  to  denote  a  vvarrior.  Hesiod  has  described  Hercules' 
shield. 

-  There  is  a  scene  not  'onlikc  this  in  the  Frogs  of  Aristophanes,  ■where 
Bacchus  and  Xanthias  contending  which  is  the  god,  which  the  slave,  and 
..'Eaciis  proving  them  by  stripes,  they  invent  some  curious  excuses  for 
their  cries. 

^  "  Phiioctetes,  feeling  the  symptoms  of  his  distemper  approaching, 
endeavors  as  much  as  possible  to  coiiceal  his  anguish,  being  apprehensive 
that  his  cries  and  groans  might  induce  Neoptolemus,  in  spite  of  his  prom- 
ise, to  leave  him  behind  ;  he  makes  slight  of  it,  therefore,  till,  quite  over- 
powered by  continual  torture,  he  acknowledges  himself  at  last  unable  to 
stir.  This  circumstance,  we  may  observe,  is  artfully  thrown  in  by  the 
poet,  to  stop  the  efiect  of  Ulysses'  stratagem,  which  was  just  on  the  point 
of  execution,  and  which,  if  it  succeeded,  must  of  course  liave  put  an  end  to 
the  drama  :  this  accident  intervening  gives  a  new  turn  to  the  whole,  rervcs 
to  introduce  the  remorse  and  repentance  of  Neoptolemus,  gives  Ulysses 
an  opportunity  of  appearing,  and  brinjjs  about  the  catastrophe."    Thus  far 


312  PHILOCTETES.  [744—754. 

Unhappy,  wretched  me !  I  am  undone,  my  son,  I  am  gnaw- 
ed,i  my  son.  Oh  !  alas!  akis  !  alas !  by  the  gods,  if  thou  hast 
ready  by  thee  to  thine  hand  any  sword,  my  son,  strike  me  on 
the  top  of  my  foot,  mow  it  ofi  as  quickly  as  possible,  spare  not 
my  life.     Come,  O  my  child ! 

Ne.  But  what  is  this  fresh  thing  thus  suddenly  risen,  for 
which  thou  utterest  so  much  of  wailing  and  of  groans  for  thy- 
self? 

Fit.  Knowcst  thou,  son  ? 

Ne.  What  is  it  ? 

Ph.  Knowest  thou,  son?     Yfhat  is  this  of  thmeP 

Ne.  I  know  not. 

Ph.  How  knowest  thou  not?     Woe,  woe,  woe I^ 

Frankfin,  who  does  not  appear  to  have  remarked  the  subHme  moral  con- 
tained in  this  part  of  the  pla}',  which  shows  us  how  often  our  estimate  of 
good  or  evil  fortune  is  utterly  false  ;  and  is  the  more  .striking,  since  it  at 
once  baffles  those  very  plans  which  Ulysses  had  endeavored  to  recom- 
mend by  the  Jesuitical  doctrine  of  doing  evil  that  good  might  follow,  and 
asserts  tliG  right  of  Providence  to  produce  good  from  the  evil  it  has  per- 
mitted. 

^  BpvKEiv  and  jSpvx^cv,  originally  the  same  word,  seem  by  custom  to 
have  taken  different  senses,  the  first  maiidcrc,  the  second  frcndcre. — 
Herm. 

^  I  have  arranged  the  dramatis  personse  according  to  Dindorf,  but  the 
following  is  Wunder's,  and  the  correct  order,  <±>1A,  olod'  u  ttuI  ;  jS'EOn. 
Tt  GOi ;   Oi'/i  ol6a.     4>1A.  Tzug  ....   ira'i. — B. 

^  Unless  all  the  commentators  be  mistaken,  these  expressions  and  the 
eAe'Ae/.e/J/.ev  of  ^Eschylus  are  positive  nonsense,  and  such  as  our  bar- 
barian Shakespeare,  with  all  his  false  taste  and  treason  against  the  uni- 
ties, would  have  thought  unworthy  of  kings  and  heroes,  and  fit  to  rank 
only  with  the  "  Do-de-do-de-do-de"  of  poor  Tom.  Indeed,  it  is  not  im- 
probable that  the  comedian's  satire  was  directed  against  them,  since  in  his 
Clouds,  V.  390,  he  uses  a  word  nearly  the  same  for  a  most  ludicrous  pur- 
pose. Let  the  critic,  however,  be  heard  :  "  Aptissime  ilia  crebra  rcpc- 
titio  liters  tt  palpitationem  oris  et  maxiilarum,  qucs  hujusmodi  dolorum 
propria  est  exprimit." — Hermann.  "Though  the  spirit  of  the  Greek 
drama,"  says  Schlegel,  "  required  a  general  repose,  favorable  to  the  pre- 
sentation of  grand  masses,  to  the  embodying  of  those  isolated  moments 
sculpture  loves  to  seize,  j  et  the  Greeks  were  so  far  from  neglecting  the 
impassioned  movements  of  the  soul,  that  they  have  dedicated  whole  lines 
in  their  tragedies  to  the  inarticulate  expression  of  pain.'' — Tn.  Sec 
Blomfield's  preface  to  the  Persce  of  ^^schylus,  in  which  play  this  unin- 
telligible style  of  grief  is  carried  to  a  great  extent.  Aristophanes  has 
burlesqued  it  in  Ran.  1314.  But  one  question  never  appears  to  have 
suggested  itself  to  commentators  :  Are  these  expressions  mere  stage 
directions  to  the  actor  1     I  think  that  in  the  choruses,  where  strictness 


75'i— 785.]  PHILOCTETES.  313 

Ke.   Grievous  at  least  is  the  burden  of  thy  distemper. 

Pii.  Ay,  grievous  indeed,  and  unspeakable  ;  but  pity  me. 

Ne.  Vrhat  then  shall  I  do  ? 

Pii.  Abandon  me  not  out  of  fear,  for  it  comes  on  me  but  at 
long  and  uncertain  intervals,  even  as  it  rages  its  fill. 

Ne.  Alas !  alas !  Miserable  that  thou  art !  Too  plainly 
miserable  indeed  from  all  manner  of  vroes.  Dost  thou  then 
wish  I  should  hold  and  touch  thee  at  all? 

Pii.  Nay,  not  this  at  least ;  but  having  taken  these  my 
weapons,  even  as  just  now  thou  askedst  of  me,  until  this  pang 
of  the  disease  that  is  now  upon  me  shall  subside,  do  thou  save 
and  guard  them.  For  so  sleep  seizes  me  when  this  attack  is 
spent ;  and  before  I  can  not  rest ;  but  ye  must  let  me  slumber 
quietly.  And  if  during  this  time  they  shall  come,  I  charge 
thee  by  the  gods  neither  voluntarily,  nor  involuntarily,  nor  by 
any  means  whatever  to  give  up  these  arms  to  them,  lest  thou 
slay  at  once  both  thyself  and  me,  that  am  thy  suppliant. 

Ne.  Be  assured  at  least  of  my  forethought :  they  shall  not 
be  given  to  any  but  to  thee  and  mc ;  and  with  good  omen 
reach  them  to  me. 

Pii.  There,  take  them,  son,  and  v/iili  a  kiss  propitiate  envy, 
that  they  be  not  the  source  of  many  troubles  to  thee,  nor  as  to 
me,  and  him  that  before  me  had  them.^ 

Ne.  Ye  gods,  be  this  my  fortune,  and  be  mine  a  favorable 
and  well-spent  voyage,  whithersoever  heaven  deems  fit,  and  the 
fleet  is  bound. 

Pii.  Nay,  then,  I  fear  lest  thy  prayer  for  me  be  ineffectual, ^ 
my  son ;  for  again  from  the  bottom  trickles  this  my  purple 
bubblino;  blood,  and  I  look  for  some  fresh  ill.     Woe !  alas ! 

of  metre  required  consistency,  these  expressions  were  chanted  in  a  half- 
articulate  wail,  but  that  single  actors,  in  the  Iambic  systems,  used  nat- 
ural and  spontaneous  exclamations  of  grief — at  least,  for  the  credit  of 
Athenian  acting,  it  is  to  be  hoped  so. — B. 

'  There  seems  no  reason  to  suppose  that  Philoctetes  alludes  to  any 
thing  more  here  than  the  ill  fortune  generally  of  Hercules  and  himself. 
Hercules  slew  his  children  with  his  arrows  certainly  ;  but  Sophocles 
ascribes  the  disease  of  Philoctetes  to  the  bite  of  a  serpent.  Hermann 
seems  to  be  mistaken,  however,  Vvith  regard  to  the  necessity  for  Philoc- 
tetes' having  exchanged  his  arrows  ;  the  Indians  use  poisoned  weapons 
to  procure  food  for  themselves. 

^  There  is  great  difficuity  in  this  line,  first  from  the  metre,  and  secondly 
from  the  elision  of  the  diphthong  in  fio!.  .See  Markland  on  Eur.  Suppi. 
158  ;  Porson  on  Phcen.  t230.  Vv'under's  emendation  appears  too  bold. — B. 

o 


314  PHILOCTETES.  [786^  ol4 

alas  airain  !  O  foot,  -what  evil  wilt  thou  work  ric  !  this  stealg 
upon  me,  clraAvs  near  to  me.  Ah  me  !  ah  mt :  ye  see  the  case  ; 
by  no  means  fly  from  me.  Oh  !  oh !  stranger  of  Cephalenia, 
I  would  this  torture  might  fasten  on  thy  breast,  through  and 
through  it.  O  heavens !  Agamemnon,  Menelaus,  would  ye 
might  in  my  stead  for  an  equal  length  of  time  harbor  this  my 
malady  1  Ah  me  !  O  death,  death, ^  ^'^'liy?  when  thus  ever  day 
after  day  invoked,  canst  thou  never  at  any  time  cornel  ^f y . 
's)n,  my  noble  son,  having  taken  me  up,  burn  me  in  this  oft-( 
invoked  Lemnian^  lire,  thou  generous  youth  !  I  too,  mark  me, 
once  thought  proper  to  perform  this  for  the  son  of  Jove,  in 
return  for  these  arms  Avhich  now  thou  preservest.  AVhat 
sayest  thou,  my  son  ?  Avhat  sayest  thou  ?  Why  art  thou  si- 
lent 7     Where  canst  thou  be,  my  child  ? 

Ne.  Long  since  indeed  I  mourn,  sighing  over  thy  woes. 

Pii.  Nay,  my  son,  but  take  courage,  since  this  pain  sud- 
denly assails  me,  and  is  soon  gone,  but,  I  conjure  thee,  leave 
me  not  alone. 

Ne.   Cheer  up  ;  we  will  stay. 

Ph.  And  wilt  thou  stay  ? 

Ke.  Be  well  assured  of  it. 

Ph.  I  Avill  not,  however,  think  I  have  a  right  to  bind  thee 
by  an  oath,  my  son. 

Ne.  Since  indeed  it  is  not  lawful  for  me  to  go  without 
thee. 

Ph.   Give  me  the  pledge  of  thy  hand. 

Ne.  I  give  it  thee  that  I  will  stay.^ 

Pn.  Thither  now,  thither  Avith  me — 

Ne.  Whither  sayest  thou  ? 

'  Cf  JEschyl,  Philoct.  apud  Stob.  cxx.  12,  u  Ouvare  Uaiuv,  /j.tJ  fx' 
iIti/j.ug?}^  fj.o/.£lv  [j-ovog  yup  d  cv  ruv  uvTjKioruv  kukuv  larpuc,  u?.yog 
6'  ovcVtv  uTzrerac  VEKpov. — B. 

^  The  island  of  Lemnos  was  said  to  be  sacred  to  ^'ulcan,  probably  from 
volcanic  fires,  which  would  be  an  additional  reason  for  the  desolate  state 
of  that  quarter  of  the  island  which  Philoctetes  inhabited.  Hermann 
restores  uvaKa?.ovntv(o,  "this  often-invoked  fire."'  [Brunck  read  dia- 
KVK/.ovfj.£va. — B.]  "  Mont  cm  Mosychlum,  qui  Galeni  a?vo  jam  diu  cx- 
stinctus  erat,  circa  Alexandri  tempora  flammas  ejicere  desiissc,  non  im- 
}.robabiIibus  arfjumentis  dcmonstrarc  studuit  Buttniannus  in  Mus.  Stud. 
■^Anliq.  Germanico,  vol.  i.  p.  2." — Hermann.  See  Homer's  account  of 
Vulcan's  fall,  II.  2,  and  of  the  Loves  of  Mars  and  Venus,  Od.  8. — Tpv. 
The  common  reading  need  not  be  changed,  cf  vs.  9SG. — B. 


Read  with  Reiske  and  Burges,  fii^v  ovv. — B. 


815—834]  PPIILOCTETES.  315 

Pii.  Upward — 

Ne.  What  ravest  thou  again,  why  gazest  thou  on  the  vault 
of  air  above '?^ 

Fii.  Let  me  go,  let  me  go ! 

Ne.  Whither  shall  I  let  thee  go  ? 

Pii.  Let  me  go  at  last. 

Ne.  I  can  not  let  thee  go. 

Pii.  Thou  wilt  ruin  me,  if  thou  touch  me.^ 

Ne.  Now  then  I  do  leave  thee  to  thyself,  if  thou  art  indeed 
any  more  thyself. 

Pii.  O  earth,  take  me  to  thee,  dying  as  I  am,  for  this  evil 
suffers  me  no  longer  to  stand  upright. 

Ne.  Sleep  will,  it  seems,  in  no  long  time  possess  the  man. 
For  this  his  head  is  sunk  down,  see,  sweat  is  trickling  over  all 
his  body,  and  one  black  vein  burst  with  blood,^  hath  forced 
itself  open  by  the  extremity  of  his  foot.  But  leave  we  him, 
my  friends,  quiet,  that  he  may  fall  asleep.* 

Cii.  O  sleep,  in  pain — in  grief,  O  sleep,  untaught,  mayest 
thou  come  upon  us  gently-breathing,  thou  life-cheering,  life- 
cheering  king ;  and  retain  before  his  eyes  even  such  a  band  as 
now  is  spread  around.^  Come,  come  to  me  a  physician.^  My 
son,  look  Avhere  thou  art  about  to  pause,  whither  to  move,  and 

^  KvK?iOg  here  is  by  some  commentators  understood  to  me^tn  the  eye, 
as  at  verse  1354.  Struve  understands  Kara,  and  translates  it  thus  :  quid 
oculus  (vel  alterulro  oculo)  sursum  suspicis  1  Hemiann  supposes  Phi- 
loctetcs  to  indicate  a  wish  to  return  to  his  cave  that  he  may  sleep  there, 
which  permission  Neoptolemus  grants  when  it  is  too  late. — Tu.  "  Coeli 
convexa  tueri." — 13. 

2  Neoptolemus,  holding  Philoctetes  by  the  hand  by  which  he  has 
pledged  his  faith,  extends  his  other  to  prevent  Philoctetes  from  withdraw- 
ing his  hand,  whereupon  Philoctetes  shrinks  from  the  apprehension  of 
the  bow,  which  Neoptolemus  holds,  touching  his  foot. — Herm. 

^  AifiOj')(^d-yT]^,  from  the  second  aorist  passive  of  the  Ionic  ^^ycj  instead 
of  ^//yvv/u. 

*  Cf.  Trach.  978  ;  Seneca,  Here.  JEt.  Act  4,  sc.  3,  9.— B. 

^  Musgrave  understands  aly7.r]  here  to  mean  Icvamcn  or  solatium,  a 
forced  interpretation  arising  from  his  reception  ofdvTEXoic,  which  Brunck 
has  changed  to  uvtlgxoic,  and  thus  improved  both  the  metre  and  the 
sense.  The  light  of  Philoctetes  is  now  darkness. — Tr.  Welcker,  as 
Buro-es  informs  us,  rightly  interprets  ar/?iav  from  Hesychius,  alyAag, 
c'/iduUttr.  Burges  appositely  quotes  Ovid's  "  lumina  vincta  sopore,"  and 
Moschus  II.  vTTvog — rredda  ixaAavC)  Kara  (pclra  deajuu). — B. 

^  Cf.  Ovid,  de  Ponto  I.  2,  33.  "At  puto,  cum  requies  mcdicinaquQ 
pubiica  cures  :   Soranus  adcst,  solitis  nox  venit  orba  raalis." — B. 


31 G  PHILOCTETES.  [835—8(50, 

how  my  fartlicr  purpose  may  be  cared  for.^  Thou  secst  now  ; 
for  what  Avork  tarry  v/c  ?  0[)portiinity,  be  sure,  possessing 
arbitration  of  every  thing,  acquires  much  power  in  its^  course.-^ 

Xe.  Nay,  but  he  hears  nothing ;  I,  however,  perceive  that 
in  vain  we  possess  this  plunder  of  his  weapons,  if  without  him 
v/e  sail ;  for  his  is  the  crown,  him  heaven  commanded  us  to 
fetch.  And  to  vaunt  unfuliilled  promises  Avitli  falsehood  is  a 
vile  reproacli.'^ 

Cii.  But  this,  my  son,  God  will  look  to,  but  with  whatever 
thou  shalt  in  turn  reply  to  me,  convey  to  me  the  accents  of 
thy  words  gently,  my  son,  gently ;  since  the  restless  slumber 
of  all  men  is  in  disease  sharp-eyed  to  discern.  But  as  far  as 
thou  canst,  in  secret  search  out  for  me  that,  even  that, 
which  thou  meanest  to  do.  Thou  knowcst  whom  I  mean;"^ 
now  if  thou  hold  the  same  opinion  with  him,  'tis  eminently  in 
truth  the  privilege  of  the  shrcAvd  to  see  into  perplexing 
matters.  See,  my  son,  the  v/ind  is  fair,  the  wind  is  fair,  and 
the  man  sightless,  possessed  of  no  defense,  is  lying  in  darkness 
(but  his  vrarm  sleep  is  propitious),  master  of  neither  hand,  nor 

^  So  Buitniann  ;  but  see  Wunder. — B. 

^  Or,  ''having  respect  to  every  thinr^."  Such  is  the  sentiment  which 
the  Corinthians,  and  after  them  the  Alitylenians,  wish  to  impress  on  the 
minds  of  the  Lacedsemonians.     Vid.  Thuc.  L  c.  69;  III.  c.  13. 

^  Struve  seems  to  understand  this  as  rcferrino-  to  the  disrrrace  which 
would  accrue  to  Neoptolemus  if,  after  all  his  falsehood,  he  should  vaunt  of 
an  uncompleted  victory  :  his  words  are  qua  viatica  ct  ivipcrfecta  rcUqiic- 
ris,  de  his  me?idaciis  etiam  adhibitis,  gloriari  vclle,  turpe  est  opprobrium ; 
and  this  Barby  commends  ;  but  the  translator  is  rather  inclined  to  con- 
sider the  words  as  betokening  remorse  in  Neoptolemus.  As  translated  it 
may  mean  either.  The  reader  should  observe  the  oracular  and  stately 
flov/  of  the  original  in  this  passage,  which  seems  to  stand  in  the  middle  of 
the  play  as  the  pivot  on  which  turns  the  whole  catastrophe. 

*  Hermann  proposes  to  read  here, 

oloOa  yap  uv  avSu/iai, 

el  ravrav  roijTo)  yvtj/xav  loxcir,  fj.u?.a  rot,  k.  t.  A., 

which  may  be  thus  rendered:  "For  to  them  (thou  knowest  of  whom  I 
speak)  wise  men  can  discover  irremediable  mischiefs  in  thy  purpose,  if 
this  be  thy  purpose  toward  him  v.ho  lies  before  us  ;"  alluding  to  the  mis- 
ery Neoptolemus  would  occasion  to  the  Atvida;  and  the  whole  Greek 
army.  The  instance  Barby  adduces  from  Catullus  '•  nihili  est,"  there 
beinir  an  evident  hiatus  and  loss  of  several  verses  in  both  that  and  tlie 
following  strophe. — Tr.  But  ov  simply  refers  to  I  lysses,  and  the  sense 
is,  el  Tr/v  avrijv  ru  '0(h'Gcel  yv6fj.?^v  tx^'-^-  ^^^  ^^  under  and  Dindorf 
v.'oiild  omit  ividelv. — B. 


8G0— 890  ]  PHILOCTETES.  317 

foot,  nor  any  thing.  Xo,  but  tliou  scest  his  look  is  as  of  one 
lying  in  Hades.  Sec  whether  you  are  saying  seasonable 
words  ;  for  the  labor,  my  son,  which  does  not  alarm  the  game 
to  be  caught,  is,  in  my  opinion,  the  most  effectual.^ 

Ne.  I  bid  thee  be  silent,  nor  be  wanting  to  thy  thoughts, 
for  the  man  moves  his  eye,  and  raises  his  head. 

Fii.  O  light  that  takest  the  place  of  sleep,  and  guardian- 
ship of  these  strangers  incredible  to  my  hopes !  Kever,  my 
son,  could  I  have  felt  confident  that  thou  wouldst  have  the 
lieart  thus  compassionately  to  abide  my  sufferings,  present  and 
assisting  me.  Truly  the  Atrida^,  those  noble  generals,  did  not 
endure  thus  patiently  to  bear  them.  But,  for  thy  nature,  my 
son,  is  noble,  and  of  noble  origin,  thou  hast  accounted  all  this 
easy,  though  oppressed  witli  my  cries,  and  the  noisome  stench. 
And  novv^,  since  at  length  there  seems  to  be  an  oblivion  and 
rest  from  this  woe,  my  son,  do  thou  thyself  take  me  up,  do 
thou  set  me,  my  son,  upright,  that  when  at  last  my  weariness 
shall  quit  me,  we  may  hasten  to  the  ship,  nor  delay  our 
vovage. 

Ne.  Nay,  I  am  pleased  to  see  thee  beyond  my  hope  yet 
enjoying  breath  and  sight  without  pain.  For  in  thy  condi- 
tion of  misery  just  now  thy  s^-mptoms  appeared  as  those  of 
one  no  more.  But  now  raise  thyself,  or,  if  it  please  thee  rath- 
er, these  men  shall  carry  thee,  for  there  is  no  unwillingness 
to  the  trouble  in  them,  if  indeed  it  seems  fit  to  thee  and  me  so 
to  do. 

Ph.  I  approve  of  this,-  son,  and  take  me  up,  as  thou  pur- 
posest,  but  leave  them  alone,  lest  they  be  annoyed  with  the 

^  "  He  looks  on  thee  as  does  one,"  etc.  "  See  now  if  thy  words  be 
seasonable,  v.hen  thou  proposest  to  stay,  having  the  best  of  opportunities 
for  departure." — Hermann,  who  reads  ro  J'  a/MGLjiovj  and  places  only  a 
comma  after  nol.  This  will  be,  "  but  what  my  judgment  apprehends,  my 
son,  is  this  ;  that  labor  without  fear  is  the  most  eligible." — Tr.  The  in- 
terpretation given  to  the  latter  part  of  this  passage  is  due. to  Burges. 
"Wander  can  make  nothing  of  it. — B. 

^  KivQ  Tu6e,  i.  c,  TvapaLTov/uai.  Gratia  est.  Idem  enim  valet  alvelv 
srepius  in  colloquendo,  quod  alias  Grsece  dicitur  Ka/.uc;  Ix^t--  Lat.  Icnignc, 
ut  Hor.  Epist.  I.  vii.  62.  Utuntur  nimirum  hac  formula,  si  quis  benefi- 
cium  sibi  oblatum  recusat.  Frequentatum  hoc  sensu  Grsecis  iTtaLvu,  cf. 
Schol.  ad  Aristoph.  Ran.  v.  511,  et  Vaiken.  ad  Euripid.  Phoeniss.  p.  150. 
— Barby.  The  reader  may  choose  between  this  and  the  translation  as 
it  stands,  but  he  must  observe  that  Kal  follows  immediately. — Tr-  Soo 
Wunder. — B. 


318  PHILOCTETES.  [891— 'J17. 

bad  smell  ere  there  be  need,  for  the  trouble  on  board  ship  in 
sailing  in  company  with  me  is  enough  for  them. 

Ne.   It  shall  be  so ;  but  do  thou  both  stand  up  and  thyself 
hold  by  me. 

Vu.   Courage,  my  -wonted  custom,  look  you,  will  set  me  up- 
right. 

Ne.  Heavens !  and  what  next  am  I  to  do  1 

Ph.  What  is  it,  my  son  ?     To  what  conclusion,  I  wonder, 
hast  thou  come  in  thy  thought  ? 

Ne.  I  know  not  whither  I  ought  to  turn  my  perplexed 
words. 

Ph.  But  for  what  art  thou  at  a  loss?  say  not  thus,  my  son. 

Ne.  Nay,  even  now  I  am  involved  in  this  difficulty. 

Pii.  Surely  inconvenience  arising  from  my  disease  has  not 
dissuaded  thee  from  any  longer  taking  me  on  board  ship  ? 

Ne.  Every  thing  is  inconvenient,  when  one  havmg  aban- 
doned his  own  nature,  does  what  befits  him  not.^ 

Ph.  Nay,  but  thou  at  least  are  neither  doing  nor  saying 
aught  unworthy  of  thy  sire,  in  aiding  a  brave  man. 

Ne.  I  shall  show  myself  a  villain  ;  'tis  at  this  I  am  all  along 
anro-rieved. 

Ph.  Nay,  surely  not,  at  least  in  what  thou  doest;  but  at 
\vliat  thou  say  est,  I  shudder. 

Ne.  O  Jove,  what  shall  I  do  ?  shall  I  twice  be  detected  a 
villain,  both  in  concealing  what  I  ought  not,  and  uttering 
words  the  most  scandalous? 

Ph.  This  man,  unless  I  am  wrong  in  judgment,  methinks 
will  make  hence  his  voyage,  having  betrayed  and  abandoned 
me. 

Ne.  Abandoned  thee  ?  not  I  indeed ;  but  lest  I  rather 
convey  thee  to  thy  grief,  'tis  that  all  the  while  is  torturing 
me. 

Pii.  What  canst  thou  mean,  my  son?  for  I  comprehend 
not. 

Ne.  T  will  hide  nothins;  from  thee.  Thou  must  sail  to 
Troy,  to  the  Greeks  and  the  Atrida3's  host. 

Ph.  Alas !   what  hast  thou  said  ? 

'■  This  observation  ofXcoptolemus  is  in  unison  with  Achilles'  celebrated 
declaration  : 

Who  dare  think  one  thing,  and  another  toll, 

My  heart  detests  him  as  the  gates  of  hell. — Pope's  II.  IX.  142. 


917—941]  PHILOCTETES.  310 

Ke.   Groan  not,  ere  thou  have  learned  all. 

I'll.  What  must  that  lesson  he  "i  what  canst  thou  purpose 
to  do  to  mc  ? 

Ne.  First  to  rescue  thee  from  this  misery,  and  then  to  go 
snd  with  thee  sack  the  Trojan  plains. 

Pii.   And  dost  thou  really  think  to  do  this? 

Xe.  Overwhelming  necessity  in  this  commands,  and  be  not 
Uiou  angered  to  hear  it. 

Fir.  Ah,  wretched,  I  am  undone,  betrayed !  Vv^hat  hast 
thou  done  to  me,  stranger?  Give  me  quickly  back  my  bow 
and  arrows. 

Ne.  Nay,  it  can  not  be,  for  both  justice  and  interest  induce 
me  to  obey  those  in  power. 

Pn.  Thou  fire!^  thou  utter  horror!  thou  most  detestable 
masterpiece  of  fearful  villainy,  lioAV  hast  thou  used  me,  how 
deceived  me !  and  dost  thou  not,  wretch,  blush  to  look  on 
me,  thy  gui^piiant,  thy  beggar  1  Thou  hast  bereft  me  of  life, 
having  gotten  my  weapons.  Give  them  back,  I  implore  thee, 
I  conjure  thee,  give  them  back,  my  son  ;  by  the  gods  of  thy 
forefathers  rob  mc  not  of  my  livelihood.  Ah  miserable  me ! 
Nay,  no  longer  does  h.c  even  speak  to  me,-  but  thus  looks 
beliind  him,  as  though  his  restoring  them  were  hopeless.  Ye 
harbors,^  ye  promontories,  ye  haunts  of  the  mountain  beasts, 
ye  precipitous  crags,  to  you  I  speak  this,  for  I  knov/  none  else 
to  whom  I  might :  I  bewail  to  you,  my  wonted  audience,  the 
deeds,  how  cruel,  that  the  son  of  Achilles  hath  done  to  me ; 
having  sworn  to  carry  me  home  from  hence,  he  is  taking  mc 

^  The  scholiast  takes  this  for  a  vile  pun  on  the  name  Pyrrhus  ;  and 
Brumoy,  following  him,  has  paraphrased  it,  *'  0  rage  dignc  clc  ton  nom:' 
But  independently  of  the  absurdity  attendant  on  this,  it  is  not  the  name 
which  Neoptolemus  himself  gives  to  Philoctetes  in  his  account  of  his 
vovag-e,  V.  241. 

^         Num  flctu  ingemuit  nostro  1  num  lumina  flexit  % 

Num  lachrymas  victus  dedit,  aut  miseratus  amantem  est  1 

JEn.  IV.  369. 

^  This  is  imitated  from  the  sublime  address  of  Prometheus  in  ^Eschy- 
lus,  '12  6log  aWfjp —  Lord  Byron  has  taken  his  idea  from  one,  perhaps 
both  of  these,  in  his  Doge  of  Venice  : 

I  speak  to  time,  and  to  eternity, 

Whereof  I  grow  a  portion,  not  to  man  : 

Ye  elements,  iji  which  to  be  resolved 

I  hasten,  let  my  voice  be  as  a  spirit 

Upon  you. 


020  PHILOCTETES.  1942—973. 

to  Troy ;  and  having  profiercd  liis  riglit  hand,^  lie  has  taken 
and  detains  my  bo\y  and  arrows,  arms  sacred  to  Jove-born 
Hercules,  and  wills  to  display  them  to  the  Greeks.  As  if  he 
had  captured  a  strong  man,  he  carries  me  off  by  force,  and 
knows  not  that  he  slayeth  a  corpse,  and  the  shadow  of  a  va- 
por, an  empty  phantom.  For  never  could  he  have  taken  me 
at  least  while  possessed  of  strength,  since  he  had  not  even  thus 
conditioned,  except  by  treachery.  But  now  I  wretched  have 
been  deceived.  Vv'hat  can  I  do?  But  give  them  back,  and 
now,  even  yet,  be  thine  own  self.'^  Vriiat  sayest  thou  ?  Thou 
art  silent.  Unhappy  me !  I  am  no  more.  O  form  of  the 
rock  with  double  front,  again  I  return  back  into  thee  unarm- 
ed, bereft  of  the  m.eans  of  sustenance ;  thus  forlorn  in  this 
cavern  shall  I  wither  aAvay,  striking  do^^^l  nor  winged  bird 
nor  mountain-prowling  beast  Vv'ith  these  mine  arrows ;  but  I 
myself,  unliappy  man,  being  dead,  shall  furnish  a  banquet  to 
those  whereon  I  fed,^  and  vvdiat  I  m.adc  my  prey  before  will 
make  me  theirs  now,  and  I  niiserable  shall  make  atonement 
with  death  a  ransom  for  death,  at  the  hand  of  one  that  seem- 
eth  to  knovv^  no  guile.  Mayest  thou  not  yet  be  accursed,  ere 
I  have  learned  if  yet  again  thou  wilt  transfer  thy  opii.ion ;  but 
if  not,  an  evil  death  be  thine. 

CiT.  AYhat  shall  we  do  ?  On  thee  now  rests  both  our  sail- 
in  sr,  O  kinor,  and  our  accedinor  to  these  his  Avords. 

Ne.  On  me  indeed  a  powerful  pity  for  this  man  hath  fallen, 
not  now  first,  but  long  ago. 

Pii.  My  son,  by  the  gods,  pity  me,  and  j)ermit  not  mortals' 
reproach  against  thyself,  having  deceived  me. 

Ne.  Ah  me !  what  shall  I  do  ?  O  had  I  never  left  Scp'os ! 
so  grieved  am  I  at  this  present  matter. 

Pii.  Thou  art  not  wicked,  but  thou  seemest  to  come  with 
bad  instructions  from  the  wicked.  But  now,  having  given 
them  to  others,  to  Avhom  it  is  fair,  sail  hence,  having  given 
me  up  my  arms. 

^  "  Struve  hanc  voccm  cum  Ix^i-  jungendum  censet,  ut  scnsus  sit,  ^joto 
yalam  nunc  tenet,  dcxtra  extensa,  arcum  ct  sagitlas  mcas,  sacras  illas 
HercuUs,  Jr/cis  fihi,  qttcE.  clim  erant.  Admoclum  dure!  'npOTLdivai  x^'i-pf^^ 
id.  q.  supra  v.  813,  i/u;3uAAEiv  x£i^p<^-^^ — Barhy. 

^  Vid.  Aristoph.  Vcsp.  642,  (pvai'  is  understood. 

^  "This  is  a  strange  remark  of  Philoctctcs.  So  he  really  expected  to 
bo  the  food  of  thopo  he  had  alread}'  devoured  I" — Burges.  AVunder  v>  ouid 
read  iUp'  (Jv,  and  fake  {'^f^ic'/'?/;-  in  Ihc  middle,  not  the  passive  sense- — B 


974—990.]  PHILOCTETES.  •  321 

Ne.  What  Tire  we  to  do,  my  mates  ? 

Ul.  O  most  vile  of  men, ^  what  doest  thou?  Wilt  thou  not 
return,  having  left  these  Aveapons  to  me  ? 

Ph.  Ah  me !  what  man  is  this  ?  Do  T  indeed  then  hear 
Ulysses  ? 

Ul.  Ulysses,  be  assured,  in  me  at  lea-st  on  whom  thou 
lookcst. 

Pji.  Alas !  I  am  bought  and  sold^  I  am  undone.  It  was 
then  of  course  he  that  ensnared  me,,  and  despoiled  me  of  my 
arms. 

Ul.  'Twas  I,-  be  v/ell  assured,  and  none  other;  I  confess 
all  this. 

Pi  I.  Restore,  let  go,  my  son,  mine  archer-arms. 

Ul.  This  indeed  he  shall  never  do,  even  though  he  would ; 
but  thou  too  must  go  ^vith  them,  or  these  will  convey  thee  by 
force. 

Pii.  Me,  thou  vilest  of  the  vile,  and  most  audacious,  shall 
these  take  by  force  ? 

Ul.  Unless  thou  crawl  hence  voluntarily. 

Ph.  O  Lemnian  land,  and  thou  blaze  of  all-swaying  fire 
Vulcan-framed,  is  this  then  to  be  borne,  that  he  from  thy 
realms  shall  carry  me  off  by  force? 

Ul.  Jove  it  is,-^  that  thou  mayest  know  it,  Jove,  the  ruler 
of  this  land,  Jove  v/ho  hath  determined  this;  but  I  am  his 
minister. 


^  As  Xeoptolemus  is  in  the  act  of  giving  back  the  arms  to  Philoctetes, 
Ulvsses  rushes  on  the  statje. 

^  Ulysses,  knowing  the  enmity  v/hicli  Philoctetes  bore  to  him,  and  re- 
turning it  with  equal  resentment,  thinks  his  triumph  incomplete  unless 
he  tcllo  him  that  he  did  it.  See  Arist.  Rhet.  B.  II.  c.  3,  and  the  Oxford 
translator's  Note,  p.  119. 

^  "  Jovem  in  insula  Lemno  natum,  ibi  deum  patrium  fuisse  satis  notum 
est.'' — Baiby.  Man  has  never  altered;  and  when  the  heathen  crew  of 
Olympus  could  no  longer  protect  craft  or  vice,  the  superstition  of  a  suc- 
ceeding age  made  itself  gods  of  all  the  host  of  heaven.  On  this  there  are 
some  forcible  remarks  in  Lear :  "  This  is  the  excellent  foppery  of  the 
v/orld  !  that,  when  Vv^e  are  sick  in  fortune  (often  the  surfeit  of  our  be- 
havior), we  make  guilty  of  our  disasters  the  sun,  the  moon,  and  the  stars  : 
as  if  we  were  villains  by  necessity  ;  fools  by  heavenly  compulsion  ;  knaves, 
thieves,  and  treachers  by  spherical  predominance ;  drunkards,  liars,  and 
adulterers  by  an  enforced  obedience  of  planetary  influence  ;  and  all  that 
we  ave  evil  in  by  a  divine  thrustinaf  on." — x\ct  1,  sc.  2. 

02 


322  •  PHILOCTETES.  [991—1026. 

Pii.  Thou  abhorrence,  what  lies  dost  thou  coin  to  utter! 
Thou  alleging  gods  in  pretense,  makest  those  gods  liars. 

Ul.  Not  £0,  but  true.  The  journey,  however,  must  be 
taken. 

Pii.  I  say  it  shall  not. 

Ul.  I  say  it  shall.     Thou  must  obey  in  this. 

Pii.  Unhappy  me !  my  father  then  clearly  begat  me  as  a 
slave,  and  not  free. 

Ul.  Not  so,  but  on  a  par  with  the  mightiest,  with  whom 
thou  needs  must  capture  Troy,  and  by  violence  raze  it  to  the 
ground. 

Pii.  No,  never,  not  even  were  I  doomed  to  suffer  e\ery  evil, 
while  I  have  this  steep  foundation  of  the  island. 

Ul.  What  then  dost  thou  purpose  to  do  ? 

Ph.  This  mine  head  forthwith  will  I  bathe  in  blood,  having 
leaped  from  a  rock  above  on  one  below. 

Ul.  Lay  hold  on  him,  whatever  ye  do,  nor  be  this  in  his 
power. 

Pii,  O  hands,  what  sufierings  are  yours  in  the  lack  of  your 
loved  bowstring,  entrammeled  by  this  man!  O  thou  that 
thinkest  nothing  sound  or  liberal,  how  hast  thou  stolen  upon 
me,  how  hast  thou  hunted  mc  dovrn !  having  used  as  thy 
Btalking-horse  this  boy  unknown  to  me,  unworthy  of  thee, 
but  of  me  most  worthy,  who  knev/  nothing  but  to  execute 
what  had  been  enjoined  him.  Nay,  even  now  he  shows  that 
he  bears  sorrowfully  the  deeds  whereby  lie  erred  and  whereby 
I  suffered.  But  'twas  thine  evil  spirit  ever  looking  forth 
from  its  lair,  that  well  foretaught  him,  hoM-ever  by  nature 
indisposed  as  by  inclination,  to  be  shrewd  in  wickedness. 
And  now,  wretch,  thou  thinkest  to  bind  and  carry  mc  from 
this  shore,  on  which  thou  didst  expose  me,  friendless,  forlorn, 
homeless,  among  the  living  a  corpse.  Ah !  mayest  thou  perish ; 
and  on  thee  have  I  often  imprecated  this,  but  in  vain,  for  the 
gods  allot  me  nought  of  pleasure.  Thou  livest  in  exultation ; 
while  I,  on  the  contrary,  have  this  to  grieve  me,  that  I  mis- 
erable Hve  consorted  with  many  woes,  scotFed  at  by  thee  and 
the  two  generals  the  sons  of  Atreus,  for  whom  thou  trucklest 
to  this  oliice.  And  yet  thou  bound  by  stratagem  and  com- 
pulsion ^  sailedst  with  them  ;  while  me,  all-unhappy  me,  that 

'  Although  it  was  hy  the  advice  of  Uiysscs  tiiat  Tyndarus  had  imposed 
the  celebrated  oath  to  defend  Helen  on  her  suitors,  yet  he  liimselfwas  so 


ICi7— 1051  ]  PHILOCTETES.  323 

witli  my  sevcn^  ships  under  my  command  was  a  willing  voy- 
ager, they  cast  away  unhonored,  as  thou  assertest,  while  they 
charge  thee.'^  And  now  why  take  ye  me?  Why  carry  me 
away  ?  For  what  cause  ?  Me,  that  am  as  nothing,  and  long 
since  have  been  dead  to  you?  How,  O  most  hated  of  the 
gods,  am  I  not  now  lame  and  noisome  to  thee  ?  How  is  it 
possible,  with  me  on  board,  to  burn  sacrifices  to  the  gods  ? 
How  any  longer  to  make  libations?  for  this  was  thy  pre- 
tense to  cast  me  out.  Destruction  on  ye !  And  destruction 
shall,  for  that  ye  have  injured  me,  if  the  gods  care  for  just- 
ice. And  I  am  sure  at  least  that  they  do  care ;  since  ye  had 
never  sailed  on  this  expedition  for  such  a  wretch  as  I  am, 
had  not  a  heaven-sent  poignancy  of  need  for  me  urged  you 
forward.  But  O  my  father-land,  and  ye  gods  that  look  upon 
us,  avenge,  at  least  one  day  after  a  time,  avenge  me  on  all  of 
them,  if  ye  have  any  pity  for  me ;  since  piteously  do  I  live, 
yet  could  I  but  see  them  destroyed,  I  should  think  I  had  es- 
caped my  disease. 

Cn.  Stern  is  the  stranger,  and  stern  is  this  his  speech  that 
he  hath  uttered,  Ulysses  not  at  all  yielding  to  his  sorrows.  ^^ 

Ul.  Much  could  I  say  in  answer  to  this  man's  words,  would 
time  permit ;  but  now  I  am  strong  in  this  one  argument. 
Where  there  is  need  of  plans  such  as  these,  such  am  I ;  and 
where  the  decision  is  of  just  and  upright  characters,  you  could 
rot  meet  with  any  one  more  pious  than  myself.^     1  am  natu- 


unwilling  to  abide  by  that  oath,  that  he  pretended  to  be  insane,  and  plow- 
ed the  sea-shore,  sowing  it  with  salt.  This  artifice  was  discovered  by 
Palamedes,  who  placed  the  infant  Telemachus  before  the  plow,  and  Ulys- 
ses turned  it  immediately  from  the  furrow.  What  requital  the  unfortu- 
nate son  of  Belus  got  for  this  is  told  in  the  second  book  of  Virgil.  It  is 
to  Ulysses'  feigned  madness,  however,  that  Philoctetes  here  alludes. 

'  Brunck  and  Erfurdt  have  improperly  inserted  a  stop  before  Itttu,  as 
if  Philoctetes  boasted  in  the  number  of  his  vessels,  which  would  have  been 
an  absurdity  in  him  on  this  occasion,  his  rival  Ulysses  having  sailed  with 
twelve. — Herm.  This  is  not  quite  convincing  :  Philoctetes  might  natu- 
rally look  for  more  consideration  as  commander  of  a  squadron  than  as  an 
adventurer  who  went  single-handed,  without  meaning  to  institute  this 
comparison  between  himself  and  Ulysses  ;  and  the  former  might  be  indi- 
cated by  Brunck's  punctuation  as  well  as  the  latter. 

^  Burges  would  read  ot,  i.  e.,  u^  de  tfaaav  kelvol,  cv  tiiaTieg. — B, 

^  Cf.  Antig.  471,  6r]Aol  ~b  yivveft'  C)[iui>  i;  uiicv  Tzarpbg  Tijg  izacdSg,  el- 
KCLv  6'  ovK  ETziararai.  Kauolg. — B. 

*  See  note  on  v.  81. 


3->J.  PHILOCTETES.  [1052—1078. 


«J'^"X 


rally  desirous  to  prevail  at  least,  in  every  point,  except  against 
thee  ;i  but  row  to  thee  at  least  I  will  willingly  concede.  Yes, 
let  him  go,  nor  hold  him  any  longer  ;  leave  him  to  stay.  We 
have  no  additional  need  of  thee,  at  least  while  we  possess  these 
arms,  since  we  have  Tcuccr  Avith  us,  acquainted  with  this  sci- 
ence, and  me,  who  think  that  I  could  master  these,  and  aim 
them  aright  with  mine  hand  in  no  wise  worse  than  thou.^ 
What  want  we  then  of  thee^  Adieu,  and  pace  Lemnos  ;-^  but 
let  us  be  gone ;  and  haply  thy  prize  may  xAn  thee  that  honor 
Vrhich  thou  shouldst  have  had. 

Pii.  Ah  me,  Avhat  shall  I  do,  ill-fated  ?  Shalt  thou,  adorn- 
ed with  my  arms,  present  thyself  to  the  Greeks  ? 

IJl.  Make   me   no  reply,  not    a   word,  since   I  am   nov/ 


gomg. 


Fii.  Seed  of  Achilles,  and  shall  I  no  longer  be  addressed  by 
thy  voice^  either,  but  wilt  thou  thus  be  gone? 

Ul.  Go  thou,  nor  look  on  him,  though  thou  art  generous, 
that  thou  ruin  not  our  fortune. 

Pii.  And  shall  I  now,  my  guests,  be  thus  forlorn  abandoned 
by  you,  and  will  ye  not  pity  me  ? 

Cii.  This  youth  is  our  vessel's  commander ;  whatsoever  he 
shall  say  to  thee,  that  do  we  also  speak  to  thee. 

Ne.  I  shall  indeed  hear  myself  reproached  by  this  man 
with  being  by  nature  over-pitiful ;''  yet  tarry,  if  he  wish  it, 
thus  much  time,  until  the  mariners  shall  have  got  ready  that 
which  was  brought  asliore,  and  we  shall  have  prayed  to  the 
god£.*^     And  he  meanwhile  may  haply  adopt  sentiments  more 

'  Construendum  potius,  [(pvv  vlkolv  xpV"^^"^^  ^^^co  ego  vinccrc,  ubi  volo. 
— Herm. 

2  hi  the  Odyssey,  however,  Ulysses  confesses  his  inferiority,  though  he 
claims  praise  for  this  science  : 

Alone  superior  in  the  field  of  Troy 
Great  Philoctetes  taught  the  shaft  to  fly. 

B.  Vm.  V.  251. 

Hermann  points  out  the  modesty  with  which  Ulysses  here  speaks  of  him- 
self after  Teucer.  The  change  of  the  negative  he  considers  to  mark  a 
doubt,  and  yet  an  affirmative  :  ncque  hcrclc  lis  colhncaturus. 

'■^  Or  this  may  be  rendered,  "  Stalk  in  Lemnos  and  welcome.'' 

*  2o{)  (l>uv},g  "here  is  governed  by  utto  understood. 

^  Il/Jcjg  TT/t'wv,  whence  ir/.ncjv,  Attic  for  7r?.iog  ■n?.€Log  :  in  the  same 
dialect  shortly  after  //m  for  AcJova  a  'Aiolcjv,  and  no  for  vQc. 

^  Such  was  uniformly  the  Greek  custom  :  'E-eidi)  de  ai  v7/e^  -nAripciq 
f/cav,  Kal  iatKeiTo  yit]  baa  t/ue/JiOV  nvd^eoOai,  Ty  fitv  ad?.Trtyyi  ciuttj) 


1079—1110]  PI-IILOCTETES.  325 

to  our  advantage :  let  us  two,  however,  hasten  hence,  and  bo 
ye  quick  in  jour  departure,  when  Ave  shall  summon  you. 

Pii.  O  cavity  of  the  hollow  rock,  alike  warm  and  icy-cold, 
how  am  I  then,  wretch  that  I  am,  doomed  never  hereafter  to 
quit  thee !  no,  e'en  in  death  thou  wilt  be  my  shelter.  O  nie, 
woe  is  me !  O  abode,  wretched  abode,  most  full  of  my  sor- 
rows, what  again  will  ever  be  my  daily  sustenance?  AYhat 
liope  administering  to  my  hunger  shall  I  hapless  ever  obtain  ? 
O  that  the  fugitive  birds^  with  shrill-toned  whizzings  of  their 
vv'iniis  would  take  me  aloft  in  air!  for  I  can  endure  no  lon- 


ger. 


Cii.  Thou,  even  thou,  mark  me,  hast  decreed  it  to  thyself, 
ill-fated   man  ;   from  no   other   and  higher  quarter   art  thou 


o 


visited  v/ith  this  misfortune  ;^  Avhen  at  least,  being  in  thy 
power  to  be  wise,  thou  hast  chosen  to  adopt  the  worse  fate  for 
the  better. 

Ph.  Ah  hapless,  hapless  I,  then,  and  marred  by  trouble, 
who  now  henceforth,  wretch  that  I  am,  dvv^elling  in  future 
with  no  human  being,  here  shall  perish,  alas!  alas!  no  longer 
bringing  home  food,  nor  possessing  it  by  means  of  my  winged 
arrovv^s  and  with  my  pov/erful  hands ;  no,  the  unsuspected  and 
dissembled  words  of  a  crafty  mind  stole  upon  me  guilefully : 
but  O  could  I  but  see  him,  the  VvTetch  that  has  devised  all  this, 
for  as  long  a  time  doomed  to  my  afflictions  ! 

Cii.  Destiny  from  heaven,  and  no  treacheiy  at  my  hands  at 
least,  possessed  thee  thus ;  keep  back  then  thy  curse,  thine  ab- 

v:TEav,fJ,dvOi],  evx^.^  c5c  rag  voui^o^ivac  izpo  r7jg  clvayuyr/g,  ov  Kara  vavv 
kKuaT7]v,  ^vfiTravreg  6e  VTro  Ki}pvKog,  Ittolovvto,  Kparv/puc;  re  Kepdaavreg 
Trap'  uTvav  to  orpdrevfia,  koX  eKTTu/uaoc  xP''J(^oIg  re  Kal  upyvpolg  ol  rt  etzl- 
[Sdrat  KOI  ol  upxovreg  (rrzevSovTcg.     Thuc.  VI.  32. 

^  Of  this  passage  there  are  many  various  readings.  Aldus  has  it  tttoj- 
Kudeg,  Geaike  TrAcjrdSeg.  Brunck  gives  the  other  conjectures  of  the 
schoiia.  But  Barby  has  adopted  Vossius'  correction,  Myth.  Buckfi.  v.  i. 
p.  211,  who  alters  it  to  rrruddeg  from  the  old  word  uTcJctv,  Trcrrretv.  Vos- 
sius, however,  understands  it  to  allude  to  the  Harpies,  and  their  pouncing 
stoop.  Hermann  reads  lOc  for  e'We,  which  mends  both  the  metre  and  the 
sense.  With  justice  he  remarks  that  the  verb  Trrucycu)  could  not  be  ap- 
plied to  ravenous  birds  of  prey,  but  rather  to  cowering,  timorous  animals 
of  every  description. — Tr.     There  seems  no  hope  of  this  passage.-   ^ 

^  Hermann  reads, 

Koi'K  u?J.odev, 
0,2,2.'  kvEX^i  Tvx,cL  di6'  u-ko  /lei^ovog.     so.  dejv. 


32G  PHILOCTirrES.  [1120—1149. 

liorred,  ill-omened  curse,  for  others.  For  I  too  am  caring  for 
this,  that  thou  spurn  not  my  kindness. 

Pii.  Ah  me !  me !  And  somewhere,  seated  on  the  shore  of 
the  hoary  main,  he  laughs  at  me,  ^yielding  in  his  hand  the 
support  of  me  unhappy,  which  none  ever  carried  besides.  O 
my  loved  bow,  O  thou  from  friendly  hands  wrested  by  violence, 
full  surely,  if  thou  hast  any  feelings,  thou  lookest  Avitli  pity  on 
me  thus  wretched,  never  asain  hereafter  to  use  thee,  as  the 
prize-gift  from  Hercules.^  No,  by  change  of  masters  art  thou 
handled  by  an  artful  man,  witnessing  his  base  deceits,  and 
tiie  detestable  and  loathed  villain  causins;  to  dawn  crimes  on 
crimes  innumerable,  all  of  evil  that  Ulysses  hath  plotted  against 
me. 

Ch.  Surely  it  is  a  man's  part  to  call  that  which  is  useful, 
just ;  and  not  to  vent  out  the  envious  displeasure  of  his  tongue 
at  one  who  has  so  called  it.-^  He,  having  been  appointed  one 
out  of  maiiy,  by  the  instructions  of  this  Ulysses,  accomplished 
for  liis  friends  a  public  service. 

Pii.    O    winged   prey,    and    tribes    of  fierce   wild   beasts,-^ 

^  QuEGCunque  vox  liunc  locum  obtinucrit,  dcsignatur  haud  dubie  Phi- 
loctetes.     'AeO/.ov  rctinendum  esse  non  dixerim,  licet  colorem  ci  conciiict 

Horatianum  illud,  accedes  opera  agro  nona  Sahiiio fuit  quidem 

cum  legendum  putarem  rov  'Hpa/cAa  Gvvae07.ov  vel  ofiueOXov.  Priorem 
vocem  habet  Oppianus,  Cyneg.  I.  195.  Sed  ea  lectio  hoc  habet  incom- 
modi,  quod  Philoctetem  liercuiis  comitem  etin  laboribus  adjutorcm  faciat, 
quod  ncscio  an  Vetcrum  quisquam  tradiderit.  Nihil  cnim  aliud  memorant 
Mythologi,  nisi  Herculis  rogum  funebrem,  rehquis  detrectantibus,  ab 
ipso  accensum  fuisse.  Hyginus,  fab.  36.  AppoUodorus,  Lib.  II.  7.  Diod. 
Sic.  IV.  38. — Musgrave.  He  says  u6e  ovk  Itl  ;\;p7/cr6//fx'02-',  because  he 
has  by  so  great  treachery  been  deprived  of  its  use.  To  which  words  he 
subjoins  the  accusative  'llpuK/.eiov  dO/Mv  hy  a  usage  very  common  to  the 
Greeks,  meaning  that  the  use  of  the  bow  had  been  given  to  him  by  Her- 
cules as  a  reward,  which  may  be  briefly  expressed :  ita  mc  non  ampUus 
Ic  -pro  pramio  ah  Hercule  acccpto  usurum.  Aiatthiae  has  given  examples 
of  this  construction  in  his  Gr.  Gr.  ^  432-3. — Hcrm. 

-  The  translator  had  in  the  former  edition  adopted  H.  Stephens'  opin- 
ion ;  but  the  sense  which  Hermann  has  given  malies  the  passage  so  much 
more  applicable  to  the  wrath  of  Philoctetcs,  and  the  general  tone  of  Greek 
morality,  that  he  could  not  hesitate  to  adopt  it.  Au:aia  fx>v  und  Tl,q  'iGrjc 
avdyKT]^  Koivcrai,  dvvaru  6t  ol  Tcpovxcvrc^  TTpuaoovci,  Kal  cl  acOcvclq 
cvyxopovan'. — Thuc.  5,  89.     See  the  whole  conference. 

^  So  the  Lercica  gave  it,  taking  the  idea  from  tlie  exultation  expressed 
in  the  eves  of  wild  beasts  v/hcn  about  to  seize  on  their  prey.  Vid.  llum. 
Od.  II.  010.— Tr.     Cf  Liddell,  s.  v.  xapo-6q.—B. 


1147—1190.]  PHILOCTETES.  327 

v/liich  prowling  o'er  the  hills  this  place  nourishes ;  no  longer 
do  ye  by  your  flight  draw  me  toward  you  from  my  abode,  for 
I  have  not  in  my  hands  the  former  defense  of  my  arrows  any 
longer,  wretched  that  I  am !  no,  this  spot  freely  tenanted  by 
you,  no  longer  a  source  of  fear.  Approach,  now  is  it  fitting 
that  ye  glut  your  mouths  in  mutual  slaughter,  with  my  livid 
flesh  to  your  pleasure,  for  life  I  instantly  shall  quit :  since  from 
what  source  will  come  my  livelihoods  who  is  there  thus  fed 
en  air,  no  loni]i;er,  no  lonirer  master  of  ausrht  that  the  life-be- 
stowingi  earth  supplies. 

Cii.  In  the  gods'  name,  if  aught  thou  respect  a  guest  that 
is  come  to  thee  in  all  good  will,  come  thou  to  him.  Eut  be 
sure,  most  sure  that  it  is  for  thine  own  sake,^  to  evade  this  evil 
fate ;  for  lamentable  is  it  to  support,  and  unschooled  to  bear 
the  countless  pain  wherewith  it  consorts. 

Fii.  Again,  again  hast  thou  hinted'^  at  my  old  affliction,  the 
best  of  all  that  have  hitherto  set  foot  on  this  spot,  why  hast 
thou  destroyed  me  ?     AVhat  hast  thou  done  to  me '? 

Cii.  ^Vhy  say  est  thou  this? 

Pii.  In  case  thou  expectest  to  carry  me  to  the  land  of  Troy 
I  detest. 

Cii.  I  do,  for  this  I  conceive  the  best. 

Pii.  ISTow  this  moment  quit  me. 

Cii.  Friendly,  ay  friendly  in  this  thy  bidding  to  me,  and  I 
am  well  inclined  to  perform  it.  Let  us  go,  let  us  go  to  our 
ship  whereunto  we  have  been  bidden. 

Ph.   Go  not,  by  Jove  of  curses,  I  implore. 

Ch.  Be  moderate. 

Ph.   Strangers,  tarry,  in  the  gods'  name. 

Ch.  AVhat  clamorest  thou? 

Ph.  Alas!  alas!  fate,  fate!  I  miserable  am  undone.  O 
foot,  foot,  what  shall  I  do  with  thee  any  longer  in  life  hence- 
forth, wretched  that  I  am?  Strangers,  come  ye  back  mj  vis- 
itors again. 

*  -^cchyl.  apud  Schol.  Aristoph.  Ivan.  1357,  as  restored  by  critics, 
^lydxov  'Apyciov  Tzorauov  ~atalv  f3io6upoig.  See  Dindorf,  fragm.  ^"Esch. 
153.  ^cidtjpog  is  a  more  common  word,  especially  in  Hesiod,  but  Liddell 
is  against  a  cognate  etymology  from  i^7)v. — B. 

^  This  ii  mo;c  than  col  implies.  An  adjective  or  finite  verb  is  want- 
ing.—B. 

-  Ci:  Antig.  857.— B 


328  PHILOCTETES.  [1191—1218. 

Cii.  To  do  what  with  purpose  differiDg  from  those  before, 
of  which  thou  didst  before  show  thvself. 

Pii.  It  is  not,  look  you,  fair  cause  for  indignation  that  a 
man  languishing  under  tempestuous  pain  should  prate  even  of 
his  mind. 

Cn.  Go  now,  wretched  man,  as  we  desire  thee. 

Pii.  Never,  never,  knoAv  this  for  certain  ;  not  even  if  the 
fieiy  lord  of  lightning  come  to  blast  me  with  the  flashes  of  his 
thunderbolts.^  Perish  Trov,  and  all  they  beneath  it,  as  many 
as  had  the  heart  to  spurn  this  my  foot's  limb.  But,  strangers, 
one  praj^er,  at  least  one,  accord  me. 

Cii.  What  is  this  thou  wilt  utter? 

Pii.  Convey  to  me  a  sword,  if  from  any  place  ye  can,  or  an 
axe,  or  some  one  weapon. 

Ch.  To  do  what  possible  work  ? 

Pii.  To  lop  oft  with  my  hand  mine  whole  head  and  my 
limbs.2     On  slaughter,^  slaughter,  is  now  my  mind. 

Ch.  Why  should  it  be  ? 

Ph.  To  go  search  for  my  father. 

Ch.  Whither  on  earth  ? 

Ph.  Into  Hades,  for  in  the  lisfht  at  least  he  is  no  lono-er.^ 
O  city,  native  city,  how  might  I  look  on  thee,  wretched  man 
as  I  am,  I,  that  having  quitted  thy  sacred  v/aters,^  v/ent  to  as- 
sist the  hated  Greeks,  and  now  am  nouolit ! 

Ch.  I  indeed  even  now  long  since  had  been  walkinsr  near 

^  Tilusgrave  admits  into  his  text  the  old  reading,  jSpovralg  ahralg,  and 
in  his  note  rejects  the  emendation  of  Valckenaer  (which  Brunck  has  fol- 
lowed), jSpovTug  avpacg,  which  he  defends  on  the  authority  of  Euripides, 
as  quoted  by  Plutarch  :  Bpovrrj^  Trvevfi'  uvaiuov  u/.e(ye,  of  Virgil,  ^^n.  II. 
649  :  Fulminis  afflavit  vcnlis,  and  Statius  Theb.  V.  586  :  Moti  tamer, 
aura  cucurnt  Fulminis.  But  he  adds,  "  Sed  videndum  nc  aura  fulminis 
sit  innoxium  fulminis  genus,  miniineque  adeo  huic  loco  conveniens  ; 
deinde  ne  (^povralg  avralg  sit  vcro  fulmine,  ipsissimo  fulmine." — Vol.  ii. 
p.  179. 

^  This  reminds  us  of  Virgil's  Moriamur,  et  in  media  arma  ruamus  :  it 
is  a  figure  well  suited  to  express  the  eagerness  of  desperation.  The  fate 
designed  for  himself  b)^  Philoctctes  was  actually  tliat  of  Cleomenes,  to 
whom,  as  in  his  latter  cays  a  bitter  enemy  to  Athens  and  her  liberties,  the 
poet  might  possibly  allude. 

^  <i>oi'a,  Schol.  davarta,  Oavurov  tTTLOVfiel. 

*  For  the  reasons  of  this  opinion,  see  v.  493. 

*  Spercheius. 


1219—1241.]  PHILOCTETES.  329 

my  vessel,  for  thee,  had  ^Ye  not  perceived  Ulysses  walking 
close  b^',  and  tlie  son  of  Achilles  comino;  toward  us. 

Ul.  Wilt  thou  not  say  [jfo  Kcoptolemus]  wherefore  again 
thou  stcalest  on  this  way,  turning  backward  thus  quickly  and 
with  earnestness  ? 

Ne.  To  atone  1  for  all  the  errors  I  have  heretofore  com- 
mitted. 

.     Ul.  Thou  speakest  wonders  at  least.     But  what  was  the 
-error  ? 

Ne.  That  wherein  having  been  persuaded  by  thee  and  the 
Avhole  united  host — 

Ul.  What  manner  of  deed  hast  thou  done,  of  those  that  be- 
came thee  not  ? 

Ne.  Having  by  base  deceits  and  treachery  entrapped  a 
man. 

Ul.  What  man?  Ah  me!  thou  surely  dost  not  purpose 
aught  anew'? 

Ne.  Nothing  new ;  but  to  the  son  of  Poias — 

Ul.  Vv'hat  wilt  thou  do  1     Hov/  does  a  fear  creep  upon  me ! 

Ne.  From  whom  in  fact  I  took  these  Vv^eapons,  back  again — 

Ul.  O  Jove !  vv  hat  wilt  thou  say  ?  Thou  surely  hast  no 
thought  to  give  them  him  ? 

Ne.  Yes,  for  I  got  and  have  them  basely  and  not  with 
justice. 

Ul.  By  the  gods,  whether  now  sayest  thou  all  this  in 
mockery  ] 

1\  e.  If  it  be  mockery  to  speak  the  truth. 

Ul.  Yv'hat  sayest  thou,  son  of  Achilles  ^^  What  word  hast 
thou  uttered? 

Ne.  AVouldst  thou  that  twice  and  thrice  I  reiterate  the 
same  words? 

Ul.  Nay,  not  once  even  could  I  have  wished  to  hear 
them. 

Ne.  Be  now  v/ell  assured  of  it :  thou  hast  heard  all  I  have 
to  say. 

Ul.  There  is  one,  there  is,  that  shall  prevent  thy  executing 
it. 

^  Cf  Anti^.  1112.— B. 

^  This  naturally  expresses  the  unwillingness  of  Ulysses  to  believe  what 
would  so  completely  frustrate  his  plans.  A  similar  scene  occurs  in  Othel- 
lo, where  ^Emilia  receives  the  first  account  of  her  husband's  villainy. 


330  PHILOCTETES.  [1242—1260. 

Ke.  What  say  est  thou?  "Who  is  there  shall  hinder  me  in 
this? 

Ul.  The  combined  people  of  the  Greeks,  and  among  them  I. 

Ne.  a  wise  man  born,  thou  utterest  no  wisdom. 

Ul.  And  thou  neither  now  speakest  nor  are  about  to  act 
wisely. 

Xe.   Nay,  but  if  this  be  just,  'tis  better  than  wisdom. 

Ul.  And  how  just,  to  restore  again  these  arms  which  by  my 
counsels  thou  gottest  ? 

Ke.  Having  failed  with  a  disgraceful  fault,  I  will  endeavor 
to  retrieve  it. 

Ul.  And  acting  thus,  fearest  thou  not  the  Greek  army  ? 

Ke.  With  justice  on  my  side  I  fear  not  thy  terrors. 

Ul.  Nor  am  I  persuaded  by  thine  hand  to  act,  mark  me.^ 

Ne.  Then  not  with  the  Trojans,  but  with  thee  will  we 
battle. 

Ul.  Be  what  must  be. 

Ne.   Seest  thou  my  right  hand  grasping  my  sword's  hilt  ? 

Ul.  Nay,  thou  shalt  see  me  too  doing  the  same,  and  no 
longer  about  to  do  it,^  however,  I  will  leave  thee  alone,  but 
will  go  and  tell  this  to  the  assembled  host,  which  will  chastise 
thee. 

Ne.  Thou  hast  acted  temperately,^  and  if  thus  thou  think- 
est  on  all  the  rest,  haply  thou  mayest  keep  thy  foot  out  of 

^  Hermann  gives  the  latter  of  these  lines  to  Ulysses,  and  thenceforward 
makes  an  exchange  of  persons  to  the  passage,  "  Nay,  thou  shalt,"  etc., 
which  he  joins  with  that  beginning  "  However,"  etc.  The  line  a/JJ  oh6t:, 
K.  T.  7\,.,  he  translates  quod  ad  affcctioncm  attinct,  tucz  vianui  non  ccdam  ; 
and  observes  that  ov  fCEldo/uai,  for  ovk  ici  admits  an  infinitive  after  it  to 
express  the  action  not  of  the  person  forbidding,  but  of  the  person  forbid- 
den.— Tr.     I  have  followed  Hermann,  with  Dindorf — B. 

"  Hermann,  giving  the  preceding  line  and  half  also  to  Ulysses,  says 
"  Quod  recte  factum  esse  vel  particula  Kalroi,  quse  est  sese  a  consilio  cap- 
to  rcvocantis,  ostendcre  poterat."  He  adds  that  the  propriety  of  the  two 
characters  favors  this  arrangement. 

^  Something  similar  is  the  reproach  of  Brutus  to  An'^ony  in  Julius 
Caesar : 

For  3'ou  have  stolen  their  buzzing,  Antony, 
And  very  wisely  threat  before  you  sting. 

And  the  observation  of  Antony  just  preceding  it  will  bear  comparison  with 

V.  1264 : 

In  5'our  bad  strokes,  Brutus,  3'ou  give  good  words : 
Witness  the  hole  you  made  in  (yffsar's  heart, 
Crying,  Long  live  !  Hail,  Cscsar  ! 


CGI— 1287.]  PHILOCTETES.  Sol 

iroublGS.     But  do  thou,  son  of  Poias,  I  mean  PliilocteteSj  come 
forth,  having  quitted  this  thy  rocky  dwelling. 

Pii.  What  clamorous  disturbance  is  again  raised  by  my  cav- 
ern? Why  call  ye  me  forth'?  desirous  of  what  matter,  stran* 
gers?  Ah  me,^  the  matter  ye  desire  is  evil.  Ye  surely  are 
here  to  heap  a  heavier  woe  upon  my  woes? 

Ne.   Courage.     But  hear  the  words  1  come  bringing  with  me. 

Pii.  I  am  alarmed ;  for  before  also  I  fared  but  badly  from 
fair  words,  persuaded  by  thy  advice. 

Ne.  Is  there  then  no  place  left  for  repentance? 

Pii.  Such  wert  thou  in  words,  even  when  thou  didst  steal 
mine  arrows,  trusty,  yet  in  private  baneful, 

Ne.  But  fear  not  that  I  am  at  all  such  now  :  I  Vv^ould,  how- 
ever, hear  from  thee  whether  thy  purpose  be  to  persist  in  tar- 
lying  here,  or  to  sail  with  us. 

Pii.  Have  done,  speak  no  farther,  for  in  vain  will  all  that 
thou  shalt  say  be  uttered. 

Ne.  Art  thou  thus  resolved? 

Pii.  Ay,  and  be  sure  yet  more  so  than  I  express. 

Ne.  Nay,  I  indeed  could  have  wished  thou  hadst  been  in- 
duced by  my  words  ;  but  if  I  chance  to  say  nought  to  purpose, 
I  have  done. 

Ph.  Good,  for  thou  wilt  say  all  in  vain,  since  never  wilt 
thou  gain  my  friendly  thought  ;'-^  thou  at  least  that  hast  taken 
by  craft  and  reft  me  of  my  support,  and  then  comest  and  ex- 
hortest  me,  thou  most  infamous  son  of  a  father  most  famous. 
Destruction  be  upon  ye ;  the  Atridca  especially,  then  Laertes' 
son  and  thee. 

Ne.  Curse  no  farther,  but  accept  from  my  hand  these  mis- 
siles. 

The  whole  scene  is  well  accordant  with  Ulysses'  spirit,  and  his  guardian's 
sentiments  ;  for  Minerva  appears  to  have  allowed  the  utmost  license  of 
tongue,  but  to  have  been  very  adverse  to  bloody  consequences.  \  id.  II.  I. 
'■  This  is  said  by  Philoctetes  on  first  seeing  Neoptolemus  ;  the  preced- 
ing words  are  spoken  within  his  cave. 

^  Came  he  riofht  now  to  sin^  a  raven's  note, 

AVhose  dismal  tunc  bereft  my  vital  powers, 
And  thinks  he  that  the  chirping  of  a  wren, 
By  crying  comfort  from  a  lioHov/  breast, 
Can  chase  away  the  first  conceived  sound  1 
Hide  not  thy  poison  with  such  sugar'd  words. 

Second  Part  of  Henry  VI.,  Act  3,  sc.  2. 


332  PHIL0CTETE5.  [1289—1310. 

Pii.  Kow  saj'Gst  tliou?  And  am  I  not  a  second  time  de- 
ceived ? 

Ne.  No.     I  swear  by  tiie  highest  reverence  of  holy  Jupiter. 

Pii.  O  thou  that  hast  spoken  words  most  dear,  if  Avith  truth 
thou  speakest! 

Ne.  The  fact  shall  be  here  manifest.  But  put  forth  thy 
right  hand,  and  possess  thee  of  thine  arms. 

Ul.  But  I  for  my  part  protest  against  this,  as^  the  gods 
witness  for  me,  in  behalf  of  both  the  Atridis  and  the  army  in 
common. 

Pii.  My  son,  whose  voice  ?     I  surely  heard  not  Ulysses  ? 

Ul.  Be  sure  thou  didst ;  and  at  all  events  thou  seest  him  at 
hand,  who  will  convey  thee  hence  by  force  to  the  Trojan  plains, 
whether  the  son  of  Achilles  will  it,  or  will  it  not. 

Pii.  But  by  no  means  with  impunity,  if  this  arrow  be  sent 
straifrht.-^ 

Ne.  Ah !  ah !  by  no  means.  Do  not,  by  the  gods,  let  go 
thy  dart. 

Pii.  Let  go,  by  the  gods,  my  hand,  my  dearest  son. 

Ke.  I  can  not  let  it  go. 

Pii.  Alas,  why  hast  thou  debarred  m.e  from  slaying  with 
mine  arrows  a  foeman  and  detested  wretch?    ^ 

Ke.  This  were  honorable  neither  for  me  nor  thee. 

Pii.  Well,  but  be  assured  of  this  much  at  least,  that  those 
chieftains  of  the  host,  those  mouth-pieces  of  lying  to  the  Ar- 
give  army,  are  very  cowards  for  the  battle,  but  bold  enough  in 
words. 

Ne.  Be  it  so.  Thou  art  master  of  thy  weapons,  and  thou 
hast  no  cause  for  resentment  or  complaint  against  me. 

Pii.  I  allow  it;    thou  hast,  my  son,  displayed  the  nature 

^  The  oic  could  not  here  have  been  omitted,  since  then  the  appeal 
would  have  respected  the  mere  prohibition ;  now  it  has  respect  to  that 
prohibition's  being  in  behalf  of  the  common  cause. — Herm. 

^  Fcnelon,  in  his  Telemachus  (as  Franklin  remarks),  has  made  a  vari- 
ation from  this  account,  for  an  obvious  reason,  and  indeed  the  same  v.'hich 
has  made  him  elsewhere  suppress  some  particulars  of  Ulysses'  conduct, 
and  give  a  new  coloring  to  others  ;  the  wish  to  make  that  chief  worthy 
of  Minerva's  protection.  He  supposes  that  U!ys.ses  made  sijrns  to  l^r- 
rhus  to  restore  the  v.-eapons,  and  that  Philoctctes,  in  his  first  impulse  of 
revenge  and  unwillingness  to  owe  any  thing  to  so  detested  an  enemy, 
unfrratcfully  prepared  to  turn  his  gift  to  his  dcsiniclion.  This  however 
is,  from  the  character  of  the  parties,  most  unnatural. 


i 


1311—1335.]  PHILOCTETES.  333 

"vvlieRcc  tliou  didst  spring  ;  not  from  Sisypliiis^  as  father,  but 
from  Acliiiles,  who  both  among  the  living  had  the  noblest 
character,  and  now  of  the  dead.- 

Ne.  I  was  gratified  to  hear  thee  lauding  both  my  father 
and  myself;  but  what  I  Avish  to  obtain  from  thee  listen.  The 
misfortunes  that  are  sent  by  the  gods  it  is  necessary  for  men 
to  endure ;  but  as  many  as  are  involved  in  voluntary  evils, -^ 
as  thou  in  fact  art,  on  these  it  is  not  just  for  any  one  to  bestow 
eitlier  pardon  or  pity.  But  thou  art  become  savage,  and  both 
refusest  to  take  a  partner  in  thy  councils,  and  if  any  one 
speaking  out  of  good  will  advise  thee,  thou  detestest  him,  ac- 
countino'  him  an  enemy,  and  that  a  bitter  one.  Yet  still  will 
I  speak,  and  I  invoke  Jove  the  lord  of  oaths ;  know  thou  this 
also,  and  grave  it  on  thy  mind  within.  For  thou  art  distem- 
pered with  this  pain  by  divine  ordinance,  having  drawn  near 
unto  the  guardian  of  Chiyse,  that  hidden  serpent,  that  there 
protecting  watches  o'er  the  uncovered  fane;"^  and  know  that 
a  release  from  this  thy  grievous  malady  may  never  come 
about  wdiile  yonder  sun  shall  in  this  quarter  rise,  and  in  that 
in  turn  set  again,  until  thou  thyself  come  willingly  to  the 
Trojan  plains,  and  happening  on  thy  cure  from  the  sons  of 
.^seulapius  that  are  with  us,^  mayest  be  alleviated  in  this  thy 
disease ;  and  show  thyself  the  destroyer  of  Pergamus  Avith 
these  weapons,  and  in  union  with  me.     But  how  I  know  that 

^  A  sneer  at  Ulysses. — B. 

^  Ulysses  himself  salutes  Achilles  as  such  in  his  interview  with  him 
in  Hades. — OJ.  II.  4S4.  It  is  curious  to  observe,  however,  how  different 
an  effect  these  two  compliments  have  on  the  young  heir  and  his  deceased 
father,  which  latter,  in  his  answer,  perfectly  agrees  with  the  old  proverb, 
'•  A  hvins  dofj  is  better  than  a  dead  lion." 

^  See  Diodotus'  oration  in  the  third  book  of  Thucvdides  :  and  Aristotle 
on  voluntary  and  involuntary  actions. 

*  From  the  mildness  of  the  climate  in  Greece,  many  of  the  public 
buildings  were  left  uncovered  ;  and  it  is  not  vet  fuUv  agreed  amono-  the 
learned  that  the  Parthenon  was  not  hypcethral.  Serpents  were  placed 
constantly  by  the  ancients  to  guard  treasures,  as  was  most  probably  that 
which  had  a  public  maintenance  in  the  building  behind  the  Parthenon, 
which  was  the  public  treasury.  Hence  perhaps  Aristophanes'  idea  of  the 
aidhig  Piutus  by  ^Esculapius. 

^  Toup  proposes  to  read  'Agk?.7]77ujv,  mcdiconim,  which  Brunck  re- 
jects, without  sufficient  regard  to  what  is  afterward  said  by  Hercules,  v. 
1432.  Quintus  Calabar  states  that  Philoctetes  was  healed  by  Podalirius, 
Machaon  having  fallen;  which  Propcrtius  contradicts,  L.  II.  E.  i.  v.  59: 

Tarda  Philoctcta;  sanavit  crura  Machaon. 


334  PHILOCTETES.  [i33G— 1365. 

this  mast  be  so,  I  will  tell  theo.  For  we  have  a  man  a  pris- 
oner from  Troy,  Helenas,  the  first  of  seers,  who  says  plainly 
that  all  tliis  is  doomed  to  take  place ;  and  yet  more  in  addi- 
tion to  this,  that  Troy  must  of  necessity  be  utterly  taken  in 
the  present  summer ;  or  he  voluntarily  surrenders  himself  to 
us  to  slay,  if  in  saying  this  he  shall  have  falsified.  Since  then 
thou  knowest  this,  yield  to  us  willingly.  For  noble  is  the 
acquisition,  that  alone  having  been  judged  the  bravest  of 
Greeks,  thou  in  the  first  place  fall  under  healing  hands ;  and 
then  having  taken  Troy,  fertile  in  groans,  thou  gain  the  most 
transcendent  renown. 

Pii.  O  hateful  existence,  why  then  detainest  thou  me  any 
longer  possessed  of  sight  above,  and  hast  not  suffered  me  to 
descend  to  Pluto's  home  ?  Ah  me  !  what  shall  I  do  ?  How 
shall  I  disobey  the  advice  of  this  man,  who  being  my  well' 
wisher  lias  admonished  me!  But  must  I  then  yield?  Then 
how  shall  I  come  forth  into  light,  wretched  I,  having  so 
acted'?  By  whom  accosted?  How,  O  ye  orbs^  tliat  witness 
all  these  injuries  befalling  me,  how  will  ye  endure  through 
this,  that  I  join  the  sons  of  Atreus,  who  have  destroyed  me'? 
How,  with  the  all-accursed  son  of  Laertes?  For  it  is  not 
the  sorrow  of  things  past  that  gnaws  me,  but  I  fancy  I  fore- 
see what  I  am  doomed  yet  to  suffer  from  them.  For  to 
Avhomsoover  the  judgment  shall  have  become  mother  of 
evil,  it  trains  up  every  thing  else  to  become  evil.  And  I 
for  my  part  am  astonished  at  thee  in  this  !  for  thou 
oughtest  neither  thyself  ever  again  to  return  to  Troy,  and 
to  keep  me  too  from  it ;  men  at  least  that  have  insulted  thee, 
spoiling  thee  of  thy  father  s  prize.^     And^  then  thou  must  go 

^  Here  again,  as  at  v.  815,  Brunck  dhTers  from  several  of  the  commen- 
tators. Gedike  and  Camerarius  understand  it  of  his  eyes,  as  at  v.  1270, 
of  QilJipus  Tyrannus  : 

trraiaev  dpGpa  ruv  avrcJv  kvic/mv. 
Hermann  removes  the  comma  and  phices  it  after  ravra,  understanding 
the  word  /cv/c/lof  as  Camerarius  does. — Tr.     So  Dindorf  and  Wunder. — B. 

^  The  passion  of  Philoctetes  authorizes  this  abrupt  anticipation  of  what 
he  meant  to  have  said  last. 

^  Musgrave,  Avho  admits  two  linos  here  which  Brunck  (sec  his  note) 
rejects  as  spurious,  is  obliged  to  attribute  them  to  an  oversight  of  Sopho- 
cles, a  thoughtlessness  with  whicli,  as  Brunck  observe.-,  it  ia  unreasona- 
ble to  charge  the  most  perfect  of  the  ancient  tragedians  in  tills  hio  most 
finished  play.  As  Hermann  inserts  them,  excusing  rather  than  dcfond- 
inj  Sophocles,  it  may  be  proper  to  fjivc  them : 


13GG— 13S1.]  PLILOCTETES.  335 

to  join  them  in  battle,  and  forcest  me  to  tins?  Nay,  now,  my 
son  ;  but,  as  thou  hast  sworn  to  me,  convey  me  home,  and  do 
thou  thyself  tarrying  in  Scyros  leave  them,  villains  as  they  are, 
to  perish  by  a  death  as  vile.  And  thus  Avilt  i:;ou  reap  double 
gratitude  from  me,  and  from  thy  father  double ;  nor  by  abet'x 
ting  the  wicked,  wilt  thou  appear  by  nature  to  resemble  the 
wicked. 

Ne.  Thou  speakest  reasonable  indeed:  yet  still  I  would 
have  thee,  putting  faith  in  the  gods  and  my  words,  to  sail  from 
this  land  with  me  thy  friend. 

Pii.  AVhat,  to  the  Trojan  plains,  and  Atreus'  most  hated 
son,  with  this  wretched  foot'? 

Ne.  To  those,  however,  tliat  will  cure  thee  and  thy  cor- 
rupted foot  of  its  pain,  and  deliver  thee  from  thy  malady. 

Pii.  O  thou  that  urgest  fearful  advice,^  what  canst  thou 
mean  ? 

Ne.  Things'^  which  I  see  accomplishing  best  for  me  and 
thee. 

ot  rbv  uOalov 

klavd'  07r?Mv  GOV  Tzarpbg  varepov  diKij 

'EKptvav. 
Philoctctes  had  heard  of  the  death  of  Ajax,  and  knowing  that  t!  c  arms 
were  given  to  Ulysses,  might  be  indignant  that  they  were  not  Ic.- towed 
on  Ajax. — Tr.  Wunder,  who  has  in  this  instance  changed  his  mind  for 
the  better,  has  rightly  followed  Brunck,  and  gives  ample  reasons  for  do- 
inrr  so.  As  to  Hermann's  defense,  we  say,  with  Burges,  "  Habeat  secum, 
ser\^etquG  sepulcro." — B. 

^  AcLvov  alvov  alvsaac,  dirum  consilhun  dans ;  alvdv  utique  nonnun- 
quam  valet  siiadere,  hortari.  .^Eschyl.  Choeph.  v.  533,  aivC)  6h  KpvTceiv 
rdode  Gvv0{jica(;.  Idem.  Supp.  187,  vvv  Tvpofnjdetav  }.a(^eiv  AlvoJ,  ct  in 
eadem  fabula,  v.  1003,  vfiug  6'  iiraLvu  jirj  KaraLaxvveiv  e/ie.  Adde  Hesiod. 
Op.  ct  Di.  V.  202. — ^ilusgrave. 

^  Brunck's  assertion  on  this  passage  respecting  the  quantity  of  the 
penultima  in  ica'/.og,  as  used  by  the  Attic  writers,  is  ably  supported  in  his 
note  on  the  Ecclesiazusss  of  Aristophanes,  v.  70,  to  which  he  refers  :  the 
following  passages  are  there  enumerated.     Iph.  Aul.  21  (anapcESti) : 

TovTO  Si  y  ta7i.v  TO  Ka?.uv  ccpaXepov. 
Eurip.  Archelaus.  v.  incert.  : 

ciiv  fivploiGL  -ij,  Ka?A  ylyverat  Tzovotg. 
Philoc.  V.  1304  : 

lAa'  oit'  luol  ica?.uv  t66'  tcriv,  ovre  cot. 
See  also  his  remarks  on  the  constant  omission  of  prepositions  by  the  trari' 
scribers,  Not.  ad  Lysistrat.  v.  408. — Tr.     I  have  translated  according  to 
Dindorf's   emendation,  7.CiG0'  opci  rcXovfieva,  which,  from  Burges'  note, 
I  ii'.id  i^  [^avtiy  confirmed  by  two  MSS.  reading  i:a/.ur.     This  appears 


S3G  PI-IILOCTETES.  [1082—1408. 

Pii.  And  at  saying  this,  Last  thou  no  Ghamc  before  tlie 
gods? 

Ke.  Xo,  for  liow  should  one  feel  shame  at  doing  service? 

Ph.  Meanest  thou  this  as  to  the  Atridas  service,  or  to  me? 

ISTe.  To  thee  surely  as  thy  friend  at  least,  and  such  my 
lancruaixe  proves  me. 

Fii.  How  so,  who  at  least  art  desirous  of  giving  me  up  to 
mine  enemies? 

Ne.  My  friend,  learn  not  to  be  fierce  in  misfortune. 

Pi  I.  Thou  wilt  destroy  me ;  I  know  thee,  by  these  words. 

Ne,  Kay,  not  I  indeed ;  but  I  say  thou  understandest  not. 

Pii.  I  for  my  part  know  that  the  Atrida3  have  expelled 
me. 

Ke.  But  look,  whether  they  will  not,  having  cast  thee  out, 
again  rescue  thee. 

Ph.  Never,  with  my  will  at  least,  to  look  on  Troy. 

Ke.  Vrhat  then  am  I  to  do,  if  I  shall  be  able  to  persuade 
thee  on  thy  part  by  my  words  to  do  nothing  that  I  say  ?  For 
most  easy  v»^ere  it  for  me  to  desist  from  my  advice,  and  thee 
to  live,  as  now  thou  art  living,  without  licalth. 

Pit.  Leave  me  to  suffer  all  this  which  I  needs  must  suffer ; 
but  v/hat  thou  hast  accorded  mc  holding  my  right  hand,  to 
convey  me  homevv-ard,  this  do  for  me,  my  son,  and  delay  not, 
nor  think  any  more  of  Troy ;  for  enough  with  loud  outcries 
hath  she  been  wailed  by  me.^ 

Ne.  If  thou  think  j^roper,  let  us  be  gone. 

Pii.  O  thou  that  hast  uttered  a  generous  speech ! 

Ke.  Set  firmly  now  thy  step. 

Ph.  Yes,  at  least  as  far  as  I  liave  strength. 

Ke.  But  how  shall  I  escape  blame  from  the  Greeks? 

Pii.  Give  it  not  a  thought. 

Ne.  And  what  if  they  should  desolate  my  country  ? 

I^ii.  I  being  by — 

Ne.  Wilt  do  what  to  aid  me  ? 

Ph.  With  the  arrows  of  Hercules — 

Ne.  How  say  est  thou  ? 

both  ingenious  and  probable.     Cf.  yEsch.  Prom.  204,  IvTaiO'  h/u  rcl  "16- 
era  jiov'/.evuv  TCiGelv.     The  defense  of  iiil7.u  will  not  hold  <Tood. — B. 

^  Hermann  reads  Aoyoiq  for  }ooif,  which  ho  refers  to  Philoctetes'  im- 
patience of  any  farther  talk  on  .so  odious  a  :;ubject  as  Troy,  and  thinks  it 
better  suited  to  the  present  indignation  of  lliat  warrior. 


140S— 1431]  PHILOCTETES.  337 

Pii.  Will  prevent  tlieni  from  approacliiiig  thy  country.^ 
Ne.  Having  biddoii  this  kind  farewell,  proceed. 
Hercules.  Not  yet  at  least,-  ere,  son  of  Poias,  thou  shalt 
hear  our  words,  and  say  that  with  thy  hearing  thou  hearest 
the  voice  of  Hercules,  and  beholdest  his  aspect.  But  for  thy 
sake  I  come,  having  quitted  my  throne  in  heaven,  both  to 
announce  to  thee  the  will  of  Jove,  and  to  forbid  thee  the  way 
whereon  thou  art  setting  out.  But  listen  thou  to  my  words. 
And  first  will  I  speak  to  thee  of  my  fortunes,-^  how  many  toils 
having  labored  and  gone  through  with  I  gained  undying  hon- 
or, as  is  before  thee  to  see.  To  thee,  too,  be  well  assured,  is 
owing  to  suffer  this,  and  from  troubles  like  these  to  render  thy 
life  glorious.  But  having  come  with  this  warrior  to  the  town 
of  Troy,  thou  first  shalt  be  cured  of  thy  painful  disease ;  and 
having  been  chosen  out  of  the  army  as  the  first  in  valor,  thou 
shalt  with  inj  arrows  bereave  of  life  Paris,*  the  guilty  cause 
of  all  these  evils  from  his  birth  ;  and  shalt  sack  Troy,  and  send 
its  spoils  to  thy  halls,  having  taken  out  the  noblest  prize  of 
merit  from  the  host  for  thy  father  Poias  by  the  vales  of  thy 
country  Q:^ta.      But  vdiatever  spoils  thou  shalt  have  gotten 

^  Between  TzeAd^sLV  and  crelx^  the  following  words  are  inserted  :  c7/g 
TTurpag.  NE.  d/.A'  el  dpdg  raid',  ucrcep  avSac,  which  Dindorf  and  Wun- 
der  omit.  I  can  not  sea  the  point  of  omitting  whatever  we  can  not  un- 
derstand, and  refer  the  reader  to  a  very  learned,  and  somewhat  satisfac' 
tory  note  of  Barges,  which  will  clearly  show  that  these  verses  are  cor- 
rupt, but  not  spurious.  Meanwhile,  the  following  was  the  translator's 
version  :  "  Nay,  my  friend,  if  thou  doest  this  at  least  as  thou  sayest  it, 
come  awav,  havinfj  bidden,"  etc. — B. 

^  Nee  deus  intersit,  nisi  dignus  vindice  nodus — 

Incideret.  Her.  de  Art.  Po.  v.  191. — Tr. 

"  The  student  should  here  remember  that  the  person  who  performs  the 
part  of  Hercules  is  the  same  TpirayuvLGTrjg  who  acts  the  part  of  Ulysses 
and  the  ^vveuaopog.''' — Burges. — B. 

^  Such  is  the  address  of  liercules  to  Ulysses  in  Hades  :   Od.  II.  6l7. 

*  Hermann  has  a  learned  note  here  to  show  why  fiiv  disjunctive  is 
twice  answered  by  re  conjunctive.  The  two  chief  points  of  the  prediction 
are,  he  says,  the  cure  of  Philoctctes  and  the  sack  of  Troy  ;  these  should 
have  been  divided  by  /2ev  and  SL  Thus  the  Avords  connected  with  the 
first  T£  would  be  only  interposed  before  the  true  apodosis.  But  because 
aftert  he  participle  there  follows  something  in  which  Paris  and  Tro}' 
agree,  the  original  apodosis  must  be  chauged  for  one  between  Paris  and 
Troy  ;  and  hence  a  second  /uev  after  Paris  would  require  a  6i  after  Troy. 
Thi.s  Si  is  changed  to  re,  because  one  and  the  same  instrument,  the  bow 
of  Hercules,  performs,  and  thus  conioins,  the  two  actions. 

P 


3^)S  PHILOOTETES.  tM32— Mo'J. 

fi'oni  tills  present  armament,  memorials  of  my  bow  and  arrov,-?, 
conve}^  to  my  funeral  pyre.  And  this  is  what  I  advise  thee, 
son  of  Achilles:  for  neither  v/ithout  him  art  thou  strons; 
enough  to  take  the  plain  of  Troy,  nor  he  witliout  thee.  But 
like  two  lions,  co-mates,^  guard  ye,  he  tliee,  thou  liim;  and  I 
will  send  ^sculapius"  to  Troy,  to  care  thee  of  thy  disease. 
For  the  second  time  must  it  be  captured  1)y  my  arrows.^  Kut 
be  ye  aware  of  this,  when  j-e  shall  desolate  the  land,  to  be 
pious  in  your  conduct  toward  the  gods,^  since  Jove  our  sire 
accounts  eveiy  thing  second  to  that,  for  i>iety  never  dies  with 
man  ;^  live  they,  or  die  they,  it  perishes  not. 

Pii.  O  thou  that  hast  Avaftcd  to  me  thy  long-desired  ac- 
cents, and  at  length  hast  appeared,  I  will  not  disobey  thine 
orders. 

Ke.  I  too  side  with  this  resolve.'^ 

IlEi?.  Nov/  delay  not  a  long  time  to  act,  for  opj)ortunity  and 
this  sailing  breeze  astern  impel  you. 

Fir.  Come  now,  as  I  proceed  vrill  I  call  upon  this  land. 
Farewell,  O  thou  abode  that  didst  help  to  shelter  me,  and  ye 
watery  nj'mplis  of  tiie  mcadovrs,  and  thou  manly  roar  of  Ocean 
dashing  cnvrard,  Vv'here  ol'tcn  within  my  cavern  have  I  been 
wetted  on  my  head  in  the  stroke  of  the  south  wind,  while 
many  a  groan  in  echo  to  my  voice  hath  the  Ilermitan  hilF 

^   Tliiij  h  also  from  Homer,  I!.  V. 

-  This  docs  not  make  Helenus  a  false  prophet,  because  Ncoptolcmus 
had  not  named  the  future  healers  of  Philoctetes  on  Helenus'  authority, 
but  when  Helenus  had  predicted  the  cure,  had  of  himself  ascribed  it  to 
the  most  famous  physicians  in  the  army.  Buttmann,  however,  docs  not 
answer  Jacob  rightly  in  every  particular  ;  for  the  aid  of  .-Esculapius  could 
not  be  required  to  expel  the  poison  of  the  Lcrneau  hydra  from  a  foot 
which  Sophocles  gives  us  no  reason  to  suppose  the  hydra  had  ever  touch- 
ed, and  which  certainly  the  arrows  so  poisoned  had  not. 

^  Ailudino-  to  the  overthrow  of  Laomedon. 

*  The  scholiast  says  that  this  ins  reference  to  the  conduct  of  Neop- 
tolemus,  who  slew  Priam  at  the  foot  of  the  altar.  In  confirmation  of 
liercules'  assertion  that  the  gods  respect  piety  toward  tlicm,  see  the  de- 
bate of  Jupiter  with  the  other  deities  as  to  wliethcr  he  should  control 
the  destinies  and  rescue  Hector. — II.  XXII.  The  retributive  vengeance 
which,  according  to  Pindar,  sicv/  IS'coptolcmus  at  the  altar,  is  worthy  of 
icmark. 

^  Wunucr  casts  out  this  line  as  spurious,  pro  viorc.  Hermann  has 
more  judiciously  supposed  that  there  is  a  lacuna. — B. 

^  TicpcfiaL,  int.  ip^/Qov,  by  a  common  anaclironism. 

''  The  licrmrcan  hili  is  mentioned  by  ^Eschylus,  Agam.  291. 


HGO— M71.]  PHILOCTETES.  339 

sent  onward  to  me  tcnipcst-tost.  But  now,  ye  fountains,  and 
thou,  pure  Lycian^  stream,  I  quit  you,  even  now  I  quit  you, 
having  never  before  reached  this  hope.  Farewell,  thou  sea- 
girt ph^in  of  Lcmnos,  and  waft  me  safely  with  fair  voyage 
thither,  whither  mighty  Fate  conveys  me,  and  the  advice  of 
li'iends,  and  the  all-subduing  deity,-  that  hath  brought  this  to 
pass. 

Cii.  Go  we  now  all  in  a  body,  having  offered  our  -vows  to 
the  ocean  nymphs,  that  they  come  the  protectors  of  our  re- 
turn.^ 

^  Brunck,  in  his  suppiemeritary  notes,  reads,  on  the  authority  of  the 
schoUast,  AvKiOiK  'Eon  de  y  ovru  Ka?iOVfj,iv7]  KpjjvT]  kv  Arj^vGi,  Avklov 
'krco/'Awvog,  7/,  olov  Iv  ep7]ij.ia,  v~b  ?.v!icjv  ircvo/usvov.  Musgravc  prefers 
y/a'Kifiov. 

^  Aaificjv  hie  dictum,  ut  sffipissimc,  de  necessitate  fati,  qusc  dci  cujus- 
piam  vokmtate  constituta  est,  caque  re  diifert  a  csca  necessitate  fatorum, 
cujus  praeses  est  Mo?pa. — Herm. 

^  Brunck's  note  on  the  use  of  ocorJ/par  with  'Nvjucpaig  is  worthy  of  re- 
mark.— Tr.  For  some  entertaining  matter  rcferrincr  to  the  fable  of  Phi- 
loctetes,  as  handled  by  Grecian  dramatists,  see  Burges'  Preface,  p.  xii.- 
xv.  cd.  Valpy. — B. 


THE   END, 


14  DAY  USE 
14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 

Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


«;-/. 


it 


1l» 


'^^^^ 


OCT  20t96C — 9- 


RECEIVED 


0CT13'fifi-6PM 


LOAN  DEPT 


mcm^ 


N0V22'66-12AM 


HOV   7196a    ^ 


RECSiVt 


D 


^JOv  1 


^  'b'b  -7  i-i^, 


LOAN  DEPT.- 


LOAN  DEPT. 


a 


^-A9Si 


6t 


^Cg.v.: 


o 


««*w^ 


H 


LD  21A-60ot-10,'65 
(F7763sl0)476B 


General  Library 

University  of  California 

Berkeley 


T  ■>»t««jev^^'!»-».-r<-i''  r 


YB  ilZZS 


^y^^ 

T^io^/et 

• 

isr 

^b 

THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CAUFORNIA  UBRARY 

">, 


^^ 


